May 2024 – Kinstellar and Strategy Council, supported by D3 Venture Capital, organised the Ukrainian Drone Defence Forum, "Drones: Delivering Victory" at the prestigious Royal United Services Institute in London on May 21.
Purpose. In connection with the recent defence partnership signed between the United Kingdom and Ukraine, the Forum’s endeavoured to enhance the collaboration between Ukrainian and British drone manufacturers and technology firms to scale up drone and electronic warfare production – a top partnership priority. The UK government has allocated £325m to support this effort.
In this context, we were pleased to work together with the Government of the United Kingdom to deliver an event that would complement the recent UK Defence Trade Mission to Kyiv in April 2024. The forum was also supported by the Ukrainian government and military, with representatives from the Ministry of Strategic Industries and the General Staff of the Ukrainian Armed Forces - the drone sector’s ultimate client - clarifying Ukraine’s front line technology needs.
Attendees. With over 240 participants, the Forum exceeded the anticipated number of attendees several times over. It included over 30 UK and Ukrainian government officials from the UK Department for Business and Trade (DBT) and the UK Ministry of Defence (MOD), along with more than 150 participants from the defence sector.
We were honoured to have as our keynote speaker the Chief of the UK Defence Staff, Admiral Sir Tony Radakin. Major General Anna-Lee Reilly and other senior MOD and DBT officials described the UK government’s efforts to supply Ukraine with equipment and funding for drone development, as well other areas. Private sector representatives provided perspectives on their efforts supporting Ukraine, including BAE Systems, Babcock International, Palantir, Helsing, and Tetra Tech. We were especially delighted to be joined by Haluk Bayraktar, whose eponymous drone has achieved cult status in Ukraine. Alan Mak MP, the UK Minister for Minister for Industry and Economic Security at the Department of Business and Trade closed the Forum, reaffirming the UK government’s commitment to supporting UK private sector investment in Ukraine.
Specific outcomes. To produce tangible outcomes, Kinstellar and D3 VC brought 15 hand-picked leading Ukrainian drone producers to London to create partnerships with drone sector members of ADS Group, the UK defence industry trade association. Curated by Eveline Buchatskiy, CEO and Founder of D3 VC, the Ukrainian and UK companies pitched their businesses in a Drone Demo, followed by extensive B2B engagement designed to ultimately expedite drone delivery at scale for Ukraine’s front-line forces.
Feedback from the Drone Demo participants proves that we achieved our objective of facilitating tangible collaboration between UK and Ukrainian drone companies. Kinstellar is committed to doing whatever it takes to enhance public-private sector engagement to boost Ukraine’s defence capabilities. Today, we took another small step toward Victory.
Daniel Bilak, Partner
Kinstellar is Ukraine’s and the region’s leading defence sector law firm. We are an integral part of the Ukrainian military technology ecosystem, helping our global and SME clients to navigate the shoals of Ukraine’s regulatory and government decision-making process. Our recent mandates include advising Rheinmetall Land Systeme GmbH in connection with its joint venture with Ukraine’s state-owned defence industry concern, Ukroboronprom; assisting drone companies with market entry and co-venturing matters; and other client projects that currently remain confidential.
Kinstellar was also represented at the Forum by Partners Anastasiya Bolkhovitinova (Head of Defence & Security) and Natalia Kirichenko (Head of IP).