Ukrainian Drone Defence Forum

Royal United Services Institute, London

21st May 2024

Sponsor the event
Ukrainian Drone Defence Forum

Sponsors

Official partners

Embassy of Ukraine

Sponsors

Palantir
Helsing
Tetra Tech
Kinstellar
FUIB
Sigma Software Labs
Red Hat
Evolve Dynamics

News

  • Registration for the Forum is now closed

Speakers

Olga Khoroshylova

Olga Khoroshylova

Adviser to the Minister of Strategic Industries of Ukraine

Andy Start

Andy Start

Chief Executive Officer, UK Defence Equipment & Support,
UK Ministry of Defence

Major General Anna-Lee Reilly

Major General Anna-Lee Reilly

Director of Operations, UK Defence Equipment & Support,
UK Ministry of Defence

Oliver Harry

Oliver Harry

Head, Defence & Security Exports, Europe, Africa, Middle East, South & Central Asia, UK Department for Business and Trade

William Green

William Green

Head, Task Force Kindred,
UK Ministry of Defence

Dr Gundbert Scherf

Dr Gundbert Scherf

Chief Executive Officer,
Helsing

Ryan Sinclair OBE

Ryan Sinclair OBE

Deputy Head, Ukraine,
UK Department for Business & Trade

Dr Karin von Hippel

Dr Karin von Hippel

Director-General,
Royal United Services Institute

Haluk Bayraktar

Haluk Bayraktar

Chief Executive Officer,
Baykar

Gabby Costigan MBE

Gabby Costigan MBE

Group Managing Director, Business Development,
BAE Systems

Nataliia Kushnerska

Nataliia Kushnerska

Chief Operating Officer,
Brave1

Rear Admiral (ret.) Michael Hewitt

Rear Admiral (ret.) Michael Hewitt

Co-founder & CEO,
IP3 Corporation

John Howie MBE

John Howie MBE

Chief Corporate Affairs Officer,
Babcock International Group

Eveline Buchatskiy

Eveline Buchatskiy

Managing Partner,
D3 Venture Capital

Guy Williams

Guy Williams

Head of UK Defence,
Palantir

Daniel Bilak

Daniel Bilak

Partner,
Kinstellar

Kateryna Bezsudna

Kateryna Bezsudna

Co-Founder & CRO,
Buntar Aerospace

Steve Priestley

Steve Priestley

Vice President, International Business Development,
Tetra Tech

Vitalii Kolesnichenko

Vitalii Kolesnichenko

Founder & CEO,
Airlogix

Daria Yaniieva

Daria Yaniieva

Investment Director,
Sigma Software Labs

Dmytro Shymkiv

Dmytro Shymkiv

Partner, Business Development,
AeroDrone

Yaroslav Filimonov

Yaroslav Filimonov

Chief Executive Officer,
Kvertus

Evgeni Utkin

Evgeni Utkin

Chairman,
UARPA

Roman Kniazhenko

Roman Kniazhenko

Chief Executive Officer,
Skyeton

Serhii Kuprienko

Serhii Kuprienko

CEO & Founder,
Swarmer

Oleksandr Yakovenko

Oleksandr Yakovenko

Chief Executive Officer,
TAF Drones

Dmytro Titov

Dmytro Titov

Chief Executive Officer,
Ailand Systems

Dmytro Khasapov

Dmytro Khasapov

Director,
Ukrspecsystems

Dmytro Zelenskyi

Dmytro Zelenskyi

Chief Executive Officer,
Toloka

Mike Dewhirst

Mike Dewhirst

Chief Executive Officer,
Evolve Dynamics

Anastasiya Bolkhovitinova

Anastasiya Bolkhovitinova

Partner,
Kinstellar

Giuseppe Magnotta

Giuseppe Magnotta

Senior Specialist Solutions Architect – Defence EMEA,
Red Hat

Lyudmyla Costello-Jones

Lyudmyla Costello-Jones

Territory Account Manager, Ukraine, Bulgaria,
Red Hat

Partners

Information partners and supporting organisations

ADS Group
AUDM

Introduction

“Drones: delivering victory”

Over the course of two years of full-scale war the significance of technology has become clear and the Ukrainian government is committed to leveraging innovation for strategic advantage. Ukraine has scaled up its UAV production by 900% in the past six months and 62 types of unmanned systems are currently produced in-country. The country’s defence industrial base is confidently moving towards its goal of manufacturing one million drones this year.

The UK, in partnership with Latvia, has initiated a major international drone capability coalition to support Ukraine. The initiative is part of the broader package previously announced aiming to boost Ukraine’s defence mechanism through advanced technology.

The Ukrainian Drone Defence Forum has been convened to bring together a broad cross-section of UK, international and Ukrainian aerospace and defence corporations to explore opportunities for cooperation. The Forum has the full official support and participation of the Ministry of Strategic Industries of Ukraine, the UK Department for Business & Trade and the Ukrainian and UK Ministries of Defence.

Programme

  • 08:30   Registration

  • 10:15   Session 1: Ukraine’s Defence Tech Sector: Strategic Challenges and Opportunities in an Era of Technological Change

    • Policy and practical implementation of the UK-Ukraine security alliance
    • The establishment of the Defence Industries Alliance and the shift in focus towards self-reliance as a key pivotal change in Ukraine’s defence strategy
    • An overview of Ukraine’s ongoing transformational model of military reform: balancing the ongoing requirement for mass against the need for military modernisation

  • 11:00-11:30 Coffee break

  • 11:30   Session 2: Autonomy and the Changing Nature of Drone Warfare

    • How Ukraine is re-imagining air and naval warfare
    • The strategic role of drone technology in Ukraine’s defence sector
    • How Ukrainian innovation and adaptability is complementing and fine-tuning leading global technologies
    • The impact of the rapid advancement of AI and emerging technologies
    • Technologies of which the private sector is leading the development

  • 12:30 Session 3: Operation Hirst and Boosting Ukraine’s Defence Industrial Base

  • 13:00   Lunch

  • 14:30  Session 4: Entering the Ukrainian Drone Market – A UK and Ukraine Perspective

    • Drone certification issues
    • Procurement challenges
    • Export licenses
    • Travel advisory and insurance
    • Aligning investments with Ukrainian government’s procurement plans. Measures to further enhance the transparency of the procurement system
    • War risk insurance programmes in place to support the localisation of manufacturing
    • Local content requirements for the localisation of industrial drone production. Focus on onshoring technology and intellectual property
    • The importance of the localisation of MRO capabilities by OEMs to ensure timely repairs and spare part production
    • The outlook for adoption of regulations to grant preferred status to companies with local production and after-sale support capabilities
    • Efforts to streamline the import and export licencing system for defence-related industries to facilitate the sector’s rapid development in Ukraine. Taking advantage of Ukraine’s e-government expertise to transition to a digital platform
    • The availability of investment incentives to attract greater levels of FDI
    • The development of industrial zones, parks, and clusters to further stimulate the growth of the defence industry

  • 15:30 Session 5: How to Manage Public-private Partnerships in the Ukrainian Defence Sector: Case studies

    • Structuring joint ventures between international players and the Ukrainian state defence industry
    • Working with Ukroboronprom / Ukrainian Defence Industry
    • Drawing on the defence innovation and manufacturing excellence of Ukraine’s key international partners

  • 16:15  Session 6: De-mining Ukraine with Drones: Technological Needs and Challenges

  • 16:45   Session 7: Partnership Opportunities with Ukrainian Drone and DroneTech Companies

    • What Ukrainian drone companies have to offer
    • Role of Ukrainian drone companies in developing FPV, long range and reconnaissance drone capabilities
    • How to consolidate and scale-up the emerging small private enterprises springing up in the Ukrainian defence sector

  • 17:30   Evening reception

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Location