Britain-led coalition to send Ukraine 30K drones

The drones, valued at some $55.3 million, come from contracts placed by the Drone Capability Coalition. Founded in February and co-led by Britain and Latvia, the coalition has the goal of scaling up and streamlining the supply of so-called first-person-view drones to Kyiv.

Along with Britain and Latvia, the tens of thousands of drones will also be funded by Denmark, Netherlands and Sweden.

The announcement was made by Defense Secretary John Healey of Britain, alongside his Latvian counterpart, Andris Sprūds, at U.S. Ramstein Air Base in Germany during the Ukraine Defense Contact Group -- the last of the Biden administration where the United States unveiled a $500 million military aid package for Ukraine.

While the United States has been by far the largest back of Ukraine's defense against Russia's invasion, uncertainty over future U.S. support for Kyiv loomed over the Thursday meeting. President-elect Donald Trump -- who is to take over the White House on Jan. 20 -- has been an outspoken critic of funding Ukraine's defense and is known for praising Russian President Vladimir Putin, casting doubt on continued U.S. support.

Trump also campaigned on being able to end the war in 24 hours -- a claim that he revised earlier this week in a press conference from his Florida Mar-a-Lago golf club resort, extending the timeline to six months.

In the potential absence of U.S. dollars, the European Union and individual European nations have projected a strong stance of continued support for Ukraine.

During the announcement, Healey stated the Thursday meeting of more than 50 nations "sends a clear message to Putin about the international community's unwavering support for Ukraine."

Following the meeting in Germany, Sprūds commented online: "Our strategic goals are clear: to ensure Ukraine's needs for armaments and training in 2025."

Ukraine's Ministry of Defense expressed appreciation for the drone commitment.

"We are grateful to the leaders and participants of the Drone Coalition for their support. The Capability Coalitions have proven to be an effective mechanism of coordinating international military assistance to Ukraine," the ministry said on X.