Ukraine is getting closer to independent drone production

Ukraine has come a long way in drone manufacturing. According to The New York Times, “just a year ago, most Ukrainian defence companies were unable to produce printed circuit boards, a fundamental component of small strike drones.” Today, Ukrainians manufacture nearly all components domestically — from carbon fiber frames, flight controllers, speed regulators, radio modems, and video transmission systems to antennas.

However, the situation is not entirely straightforward. Yes, Ukraine is capable of producing drones without Chinese parts. In practice, though, mass production remains economically unfeasible at this stage. Domestic production of certain components would be incomparably more expensive than purchasing them from China. Nevertheless, it is worth noting that the share of Chinese components in Ukrainian drones has dropped to around 38 percent in 2025. At the beginning of the conflict, that share stood at 100 percent.

Several Ukrainian companies now produce drones entirely without Chinese components. Two of them have been selected to participate in a Pentagon-developed program known as the “drone dominance” initiative, which envisions the US purchasing thousands of low-cost attack drones.

Drones have become the most important and most effective weapon for the Ukrainians. According to Maj. Rober Browdi, commander of the Ukrainian Unmanned Systems Forces, “drones currently account for over 90 percent of Russian losses.” Ukraine is approaching the stage of mass drone production, which will free it from dependence on foreign suppliers and Western assistance in this area. This independence, in turn, will strengthen its negotiating position in talks with Russia.