While the European Union is investing around €6 billion in Ukraine’s drone capabilities, Kiev has secured an exemption from procurement rules that could allow it to continue using critical Chinese components – highlighting an uncomfortable dependence on a country closely aligned with Russia.
The drone industry in Ukraine has expanded significantly since Moscow launched a full-scale invasion of the neighboring country in February 2022.
However, Kiev continues to depend on cheaper Chinese components to meet frontline demand. Relations between Beijing and Kiev have deteriorated in recent years, and have been accompanied by concerns about China’s ties with Russia.
The latest exception is part of a €60 billion loan for defense procurement, which focuses on components that are reportedly not available in sufficient quantities in Europe.
Vita Holod, a researcher at the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine, told Radio Free Europe (RFE/RL) that “the EU’s exclusion is quite significant. It shows that neither Ukraine nor Europe can yet replace Chinese suppliers at the scale, speed, and price necessary.”
While Kiev has reduced its purchases of ready-made drones from China, components such as engines, lithium batteries, and optical fibers remain in high demand.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, during a speech on July 15, on the occasion of Ukraine’s Statehood Day, said that his country is producing 10 million drones per year.
In the first six months of 2026, imports of Chinese parts have already reached about 76 percent of the total recorded during the previous year.
A report by the Ukrainian Defense Industry Council and the Snake Island Institute, a Kiev-based think tank, said that 38 percent of the value of drone components imported by Ukraine in the first half of 2025 came from China.
“The world is witnessing China’s drone war in Ukraine, where both sides are using many of the same technologies against each other,” Holod said. “As Ukraine builds greater self-reliance and explores alternative supply channels, Kiev must be cautious, measured, and pragmatic in its dealings with Beijing.”
Cold relationships
Such pragmatic relations between Beijing and Kiev have become increasingly uncomfortable as the war continues.
Experts are not convinced that an expected visit to Beijing by Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andriy Sybiha will have much of an impact on changing the situation.
China has avoided openly condemning Russia’s war on Ukraine, while at the same time maintaining Moscow as a close ally.
Michal Bogusz, senior researcher at the Warsaw-based Center for Eastern Studies, said it is unlikely that Beijing will change its stance on the war and take a stronger stance on a ceasefire.