The partnership — a memorandum of understanding between Oregon-based ReconCraft and an American subsidiary of the Ukrainian-linked defence technology company UForce — will involve not only drones from the Magura family, but also software and command-and-control technologies.
Jennifer Kavanagh, director of military analysis at the Defence Priorities policy institute, called the memorandum the “first and most advanced” she had seen between US and Ukrainian companies.
Magura drones have long been successful in attacking Russian warships, oil tankers and infrastructure in the Black Sea. The precise model of the Magura drone to be manufactured in the US remains unspecified, as details are being finalised, according to ReconCraft Co-Founder Joe Silkowski.
Though the agreement fell short of a contract, construction needed to allow domestic production of the drones is now “underway,” he said.
Still, it is too early to tell how successful the partnership will be. It is unclear whether Ukrainian technology can meet US production standards, including strict supply chain regulations, according to Kavanagh.
“Ukraine relies heavily on Chinese parts for most of its defense equipment, and no Chinese parts can be in US defense technology,” she said, adding that recreating the supply chain domestically or through friendly countries is likely to make production slower and costlier, eroding many of the advantages of the Ukrainian technology.
A person familiar with the memorandum, who asked not to be identified discussing private deliberations, said no Chinese parts would be used to produce the boats, in compliance with US law.
ReconCraft has a history of supplying boats to special operations forces. Sean Plankey, overseeing the partnership as the chief executive officer of UForce USA, previously served as senior adviser on Coast Guard issues to then-Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem.
“Ukraine’s defense industry — including a range of companies as well as UForce — has emerged as one of the world’s leading centers of military innovation,” Plankey said in a statement. He called the agreement “an important step in bringing the combat-proven Magura family of autonomous surface vessels to the US.”