Volodymyr Zelenskyy disclosed on 28 March that approximately 10 drone factories have been built abroad to circumvent Ukraine's wartime export ban.1 One company sold 1,000 interceptor drones to a foreign buyer for $3.5 million while simultaneously holding a €300 million state production contract. At least one European country purchased drones without warheads and then requested Ukrainian operators to accompany them.
The economics explain the leakage. Ukrainian interceptors cost $2,500 to $5,000 per unit.2 A PAC-3 Patriot interceptor costs $13.5 million. That price ratio makes Ukrainian systems irresistible to any buyer facing drone threats, and demand from 11 nations remains blocked by the export ban. Manufacturers with excess capacity and uncertain state payment timelines have rational incentives to seek foreign hard-currency buyers.
Ukraine can technically build 1,000 interceptors per day but is budget-limited to roughly half that. The funding gap, perhaps $5 million to $10 million daily, represents the difference between a cottage industry and a global export platform. Zelenskyy warned the "window of opportunity" is narrowing: private manufacturers are outpacing state coordination.
