Ukrainian and Finnish companies have signed agreements to develop and manufacture drones in Finland to supply both the Ukrainian military and European markets.
President Volodymyr Zelensky announced the agreements on Sunday, Aug. 23, following a roundtable meeting in Kyiv with Finnish President Alexander Stubb focused on defense-industrial cooperation.
“Today we are taking another step toward deepening our cooperation, combining Ukrainian combat experience with Finnish technologies,” Zelensky wrote on Facebook.
According to the president, the newly signed documents cover the joint production of uncrewed aerial vehicles, the expansion of capabilities in maritime uncrewed systems, and the establishment of a joint venture dedicated to producing ground robotic complexes.
Zelensky emphasized the timing of the agreement, which coincides with Ukraine’s National Flag Day and the eve of its Independence Day.
“On these important dates, we especially feel the value of true friendship,” he stated, expressing gratitude to Stubb, the Finnish government, businesses, and the people of Finland for their steadfast support since the beginning of Russia’s full-scale invasion.
Expanding the Drone Deal format
The agreements with Finland follow a broader diplomatic push by Kyiv to secure long-term defense cooperation pacts under what it calls the “Drone Deal” format.
On July 7, during the NATO summit in Ankara, Turkey, Ukraine signed similar Drone Deal agreements with Estonia and the Netherlands.
At the time, Zelensky described the agreements as “full-fledged” cooperation deals covering joint drone production, technology development, and systematic arms exports.
During that same summit, Zelensky and Stubb held a separate meeting to discuss the timelines and terms for finalizing their own bilateral Drone Deal.
The overarching initiative aims to scale up international defense manufacturing, utilizing Ukrainian combat-tested expertise while mitigating the risk of Russian strikes on domestic production facilities by relocating joint ventures to allied nations.