By
/ CBS News
Kyiv — The governments of the U.S. and Ukraine have drafted a memorandum outlining the terms of a potential new defense deal between the countries, according to three sources familiar with the matter.
The draft hashed out by the U.S. State Department and Ukrainian Ambassador to the U.S. Olha Stefanishyna is a first step toward a defense agreement that would allow Ukraine to export military technology to the U.S. and to manufacture drones in joint ventures with American companies.
During the war in Iran, Ukraine has capitalized on innovations forged by the country's military and defense contractors over more than four years of grueling conflict with Russia. Kyiv has sent drone interceptors and pilots to the Middle East to help U.S. allies defend against the same types of Iranian-designed Shahed drones that Russia has used to attack Ukraine's towns and cities.
Already, over the last two months, Ukraine has signed defense agreements with Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and the United Arab Emirates, and Ukrainian officials say more deals are in the works.
"Nearly 20 countries are currently involved at various stages: 4 agreements have already been signed, and the first contracts under these agreements are now being prepared," Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said on Telegram.
Ukrainian officials first pitched the idea of cooperation on drones to the White House in August 2025, after President Trump privately lauded Operation Spiderweb, a daring Ukrainian drone attack deep behind Russian lines. The operation saw Ukrainian pilots remotely guide explosive drones — deployed from inconspicuous trucks that had been smuggled into Russia — to destroy dozens of Russian warplanes as they sat parked on tarmacs around the country.
Filling gaps in budgets and production capacities
Drone collaboration with the U.S., Ukrainian officials told CBS News, would be mutually beneficial, as American financing would help both countries expand their defense production output.
Ukraine's National Security Council projects a defense production capacity of $55 billion in 2026. To realize that capacity, Ukraine will need much more external financing as Kyiv currently only has funds to buy around $15 billion worth of weapons this year, according to Yuriy Sak, an adviser to Ukraine's Ministry of Strategic Industries.
Ukraine also excels in manufacturing weapons systems the U.S. has not previously prioritized. One Ukrainian manufacturer plans to produce more than 3 million low-cost first-person-view military drones in 2026. The U.S. built only 300,000 in 2025, by comparison.
Ukrainian companies are also developing innovative electronic warfare methods and hardware. Technology pioneered by Sine Engineering, a Ukrainian defense firm that recently received a multi-million dollar investment from the U.S.-Ukraine Reconstruction Investment Fund, allows drones to fly without GPS guidance to evade signal-jamming.
Several Ukrainian companies have already brought their technology to the U.S. In March, General Cherry, one of Ukraine's largest drone manufacturers, signed a deal to make unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) in the U.S. alongside American military manufacturer Wilcox Industries.
The Pentagon has also invited Ukrainian companies to participate in its Drone Dominance initiative, a $1.1 billion program aimed at identifying drones for U.S. military contracts.
But a broader defense agreement, which would potentially bring more Ukrainian technology to the U.S., has faced political roadblocks.
From "lack of buy-in" to "positive news for Ukraine"?
Ukrainian officials told CBS News they felt a "lack of buy-in" on a drone deal from senior figures within the Department of Defense and the White House, particularly since the war in Iran began. President Trump has publicly rebuffed Ukraine's efforts to supply counter-drone technology to the Middle East.
"We don't need their help in drone defense," Mr. Trump told Fox News in early March. "We know more about drones than anybody. We have the best drones in the world, actually."
Ukraine's wartime necessities have presented challenges of their own.
Zelenskyy has said the government will only relax broad military export restrictions after Kyiv can be certain that Ukrainian companies' intellectual property is protected, and that they're still able to deliver sufficient supplies for Ukraine's defense amid the ongoing Russian invasion.
But the memorandum now reached between Kyiv and Washington on an early-stage drone deal appears to suggest those obstacles may be falling away.
"In addition to the Middle East and the Gulf, the South Caucasus, and Europe, we will soon launch this new security cooperation within the framework of Drone Deals with another part of the world as well," Zelenskyy said in his Telegram post this week. "We are preparing positive news for Ukraine."
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