Renault considering making drones in Ukraine

AFP | Paris

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French automaker Renault said yesterday that the government had asked it to look at making drones in Ukraine, but it had not yet made a decision.

“We have been contacted by the defence ministry. Exchanges have been made, (but) no decision has been at this stage because we are waiting on project specifics from the ministry,” a Renault spokesperson told AFP.

A report by broadcaster Franceinfo had earlier said, without citing sources, that Renault was to open drone production lines “dozens or hundreds of kilometres from the front line”.

Ukraine relies heavily on drones in its fight against Russia’s invading forces. On June 1, it used over 100 drones to strike Russian military aircraft deep inside Russian territory, in an operation called “Spider’s Web”.

The news that Renault is considering building drones in Ukraine came two days after French Defence Minister Sebastien Lecornu announced that a “big company making French cars” was going to join up with a French defence manufacturer to develop production lines in Ukraine “able to produce drones”.

The drones would be used by the Ukrainian military “but we will also have our own French weapons benefit from constant tactical and operational training in real-world conditions,” Lecornu said Friday.

The minister noted that the Ukrainian military was better in its use and development of drones that its French counterpart. The French government holds a 15 percent stake in Renault.