Philippines, Ukraine Explore Joint Drone Production Deal
Ukraine is seeking to co-produce uncrewed platforms with the Philippines under a prospective defense deal.
According to Ukrainian Ambassador to the Philippines Yuliia Fediv, a memorandum of understanding could be signed during a Ukrainian defense delegation visit to the Southeast Asian country in October.
A draft memorandum of understanding has already been submitted to the Philippine Department of National Defense, according to Fediv.
“We are open for cooperation, but I think the first step needed is to sign the agreement on defense between Ukraine and the Philippine government to create this legal framework,” The Manila Times quoted Fediv as saying.
“We [are now] awaiting an answer [from the Philippine Department of National Defense]. Then we can move forward with co-production [of drones].”
Leveraging Ukraine’s Drone Experience
Drones have played a pivotal role in the ongoing Russia-Ukraine war, with both sides deploying and adapting unmanned platforms to meet their specific needs.
Leveraging this wartime experience, Ukraine has proposed sharing its expertise and jointly developing systems with friendly nations.
In addition to uncrewed aerial platforms, Ukraine has employed unmanned surface vehicles, or drone boats, as part of its asymmetric campaign against the much larger Russian Navy.
The systems could be used to remotely patrol the West Philippine Sea, the portion of the South China Sea within the Philippines’ exclusive economic zone.
The ambassador added that cybersecurity cooperation is also expected to be part of discussions during the visit.
“The Philippines, as I mentioned several times… You are our reliable partner in the region. That’s why we are open to share with you all the lessons [we] learned [from our situation],” Fediv said.
