Newly appointed Defense Minister Denys Shmyhal has held his first working meeting with First Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Digital Transformation Mykhailo Fedorov. The main focus of their talks was a new strategy to boost defense technologies and innovations aimed at strengthening Ukraine’s military.
One of the key areas of cooperation is scaling up technologies that have already proven effective on the battlefield. In particular, Shmyhal highlighted interceptor drones, which he described as a major breakthrough in countering Shahed drones, with the number of successful interceptions growing rapidly every month.
The officials also discussed launching new solutions for the front line — including deep strike capabilities, further development of the Army of Drones system, and gamification, which Fedorov said has brought greater transparency and competition to Ukraine’s drone program.
Another priority is reducing the time it takes to deliver new technologies to the front and simplifying the process of writing off and transferring drones so that troops can get what they need without unnecessary bureaucracy.
Additionally, the meeting focused on the use of high-quality data to improve battlefield decision-making and effectiveness. Both ministers stressed that strengthening defense innovation is a top priority set by the President.