Ukraine tells foreign suppliers to commit beyond initial testing

Ukraine is setting up new partnership models to hold international defence manufacturers accountable, after some companies tested their technology in the country and have failed to follow through, Ukrainian military officials said.

Speaking at the Apex conference in London on 8 October, one official said some manufacturers do not commit to working with Ukraine to iterate their technology, viewing the country as a way to show – and “get a stamp” of approval – that it has been used there.

"And for us, that's really difficult because... our military expends a lot of time and resources, and it's not their main job to support those manufacturers with that R&D... but we do it because it's in our best interest to have better capabilities at the frontline... and we're happy to help," the official said.

The new models are intended to ensure partnerships continue beyond an initial engagement, with follow-on work and supporting infrastructure in place so that military time is spent on "valuable" partnerships.

Why collaboration and iteration matters

Another official said that collaboration and working with the Ukrainian military is so important because no single capability handed to the end users, so far, have worked straight away.

Every capability needs "at least a couple of iterations between the product that we got and the product that we actually started successfully using," the official said.

The official added that "99% of manufacturers lack the operational awareness of what is actually necessary," including the small details and context needed for a product to succeed.

When to send equipment for testing

The right time to send technology to Ukraine for testing depends on the capability, one of the officials said.

"If this is yet another drone, as I like to call it, then we'd rather take it at later stages. But if it's something that can potentially give us really, really cool capabilities, we could engage even at the ideation, early prototype stage, because the earlier we get there, the faster we can get to those capabilities."

Ukraine assesses this on a case-by-case basis, the official said, adding: "Don't be embarrassed to send it to us."