Ukraine plans to open 10 weapons export centres across Europe as Kyiv looks to turn its rapidly expanding wartime defence industry into a long-term international business.
President Volodymyr Zelensky said the hubs are due to open in 2026 and will be based in partner countries, including Germany, the United Kingdom, and nations across the Baltic and Nordic regions. The move forms part of a broader strategy to internationalise Ukrainian arms production and unlock new revenue streams for domestic defence companies whose manufacturing capacity is rapidly expanding.
Announcing the plans, Zelensky said Europe’s security is increasingly being shaped by technologies developed during Ukraine’s resistance to Russia’s full-scale invasion, arguing that many future defence initiatives will be built largely on Ukrainian drone technology and engineering expertise.
The export drive is being accompanied by overseas manufacturing partnerships. Zelensky confirmed that Ukrainian drone production is due to begin on a German production line by mid-February. He did not specify which company’s drones these would be but as we’ve reported previously German company Quantum Systems is working with Ukraine’s Frontline Robotics to manufacture drones in the country. Similar production lines based on Ukrainian designs are already operational in the UK.
Zelensky described both initiatives as examples of Ukraine exporting technology and industrial know-how rather than simply shipping finished weapons systems.
“It is very encouraging that exports are being launched… The encouraging part is that today, Europe’s security is based on [Ukraine’s] technologies and on drones,” Zelensky said. “Some talk about a ‘shield’ or other concepts of protection — there are several different projects in Europe — but most of them will be built primarily on Ukrainian technologies and Ukrainian specialists.”
Kyiv has been signalling for months that it intends to loosen wartime export restrictions imposed following Russia’s invasion. In June 2025, Zelensky announced the launch of the Build with Ukraine framework, which is being put into action in the Quantum Systems/Frontline partnership. This enables the export of Ukrainian defence technologies to partner countries, a move that Tech Forces in UA — an association of leading manufacturers of innovative weapons for Ukraine’s defenders — has advocated for over the past two years.
Ukrainian officials have said revenue from such sales would be reinvested into acquiring critical equipment for the armed forces and expanding domestic defence production.
The move follows a surge in Ukraine’s defence technology sector since Russia’s full-scale invasion, particularly in unmanned systems.
More than 200 drone companies have been formed or grown during the war, many producing relatively cheap and easily modified platforms that have begun shaping battlefield tactics and drawing attention from NATO and European militaries.
Ukrainian defence firms are increasingly relying on overseas buyers to fund future growth and keep production lines running. European militaries, meanwhile, are evaluating equipment built and reworked under wartime pressure.
The expansion also highlights Ukraine’s longer-term reconstruction strategy, in which defence manufacturing is expected to support economic recovery and develop into a sustainable export industry.
