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Ukrainian-designed Magura naval drones will be manufactured in the United States under a new partnership between American boat builder ReconCraft and Ukrainian drone developer Uforce, The Wall Street Journal reported.
The memorandum of understanding was signed last week at the Ukrainian Embassy in Washington. Under the agreement, the two companies will jointly provide materials, equipment and personnel to establish production of the combat-proven unmanned surface vessels in the United States.
ReconCraft, based in Portland, Oregon, manufactures boats for U.S. special operations forces. According to company co-founder Joe Silkovski, the goal is to produce hundreds—and eventually thousands—of Magura drones annually at facilities in Oregon and South Carolina.
The agreement comes as the United States expands its use of unmanned naval systems. Earlier this month, U.S. forces employed kamikaze naval drones in operations targeting an Iranian submarine and a naval facility in the Strait of Hormuz, underscoring growing demand for lower-cost autonomous weapons.
The partnership also reflects broader U.S.-Ukrainian defense cooperation. It follows recent discussions on allowing Ukraine to manufacture U.S.-designed Patriot interceptor missiles under license and comes as the Pentagon plans to invest tens of billions of dollars in autonomous systems over the coming years.
The Magura is a high-speed unmanned surface vessel capable of carrying a payload of approximately 770 kilograms over a range of about 560 kilometers. Depending on the configuration, each drone costs less than $500,000 and can be configured for strike missions, launching aerial drones, mine countermeasures or towing sonar systems for anti-submarine warfare.
Uforce CEO Oleh Rohynskyi said Ukraine’s decision to authorize production of the Magura in the United States is “absolutely critical” because it will allow the U.S. military to benefit from tactics and operational concepts refined during years of combat in Ukraine.
“We are the first company producing unmanned surface vessels approved by the Ukrainian government for manufacturing in America to support U.S. military success,” said Sean Plankey, head of Uforce USA.
The agreement follows the first operational use of Ukrainian-made Magura naval drones by the U.S. military during exercises in the Philippines, where the unmanned vessels successfully sank a target ship.
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