US officials said Washington sent Kiev billions of dollars for the arms program that began in 2022
The Biden administration declassified documents, and officials spoke with reporters about Washington’s clandestine support for Ukraine’s domestic drone manufacturing program. The drone warfare program was backed by CIA intelligence, with one official saying it had “a real strategic impact” on the war.
On Thursday, The New York Times reported on statements by US officials who spoke about Washington’s “once-secret support for the [Ukraine’s] military drone industry.” The outlet explained, “US officials said that they had made big investments that helped Ukraine start and expand its production of drones as it battled Russia’s larger and better-equipped army.”
Officials said Kiev was able to develop a new generation of drones with the funds. The US sent Ukraine at least $1.5 billion to support the program. CIA Director William Burns recently indicated some of Kiev’s successes in drone warfare is a result of his agency’s intelligence.
The officials speaking about the program did not detail what drone systems Kiev developed through the program. The officials did note Ukraine’s success in targeting Russia’s Black Sea fleet with sea drones and that drones had slowed the Russian advance.
Kiev has increasingly attacked targets inside Russia with missiles and drones. Ukraine has hit civilian buildings, Moscow’s energy infrastructure, and radars for Russia’s nuclear weapons early warning systems.
Moscow has often retaliated against Kiev’s drone and missile attacks on Russia with bombings of Ukrainian cities and energy infrastructure. Additionally, the Kremlin usually views Washington as being behind Ukrainian attacks on Russian soil.
