Zelenskiy says some 20 countries interested in drone deals with Ukraine

KYIV, May 11 (Reuters) - ‌Nearly 20 ​countries ​are interested in drone deals with Ukraine and four agreements have already been signed, ‌Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said on Monday.

Since ⁠the outbreak of the Iran war in late February, Zelenskiy ‌has managed to leverage ‌Ukraine's expertise in drone warfare into a series of successful diplomatic deals during visits to the ​Middle East and Europe.

"Nearly 20 countries are currently involved at various stages: 4 agreements ⁠have already been signed, and the first contracts under these agreements are ​now being prepared," Zelenskiy said on X.

In April, Ukraine signed defence and drone deals ​in Germany, Norway and the ‌Netherlands, following long-term security partnerships with Saudi Arabia, Qatar and the United ⁠Arab Emirates in late March.

Ukraine also signed agreements last month with Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev on defence and ⁠energy.

In his post, Zelenskiy also said Ukraine would launch security ​cooperation within the framework of drone deals with another part of the world, without specifying which.

Ukraine has already started ‌to receive the necessary volume of fuel thanks to the agreements, Zelenskiy added, ‌without elaborating.

Zelenskiy hopes his drone diplomacy can help ⁠secure energy-supply deals with ‌Middle Eastern states ​as well as markets for Ukraine's agricultural produce.

(Reporting by Anna Pruchnicka; Editing by Gareth ‌Jones)

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