Dutch Scientists to Help Ukraine Develop Breakthrough Defense Technologies

Ukraine has signed its first international research and development (R&D) partnership in the defense technology sector, teaming up with the Netherlands’ top research institute, the Netherlands Organisation for Applied Scientific Research (TNO), to drive innovations that could reshape the battlefield.

The Gaze reports this, referring to an announcement made by Ukraine's Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Digital Transformation Mykhailo Fedorov.

The initiative is spearheaded by Brave1, a government-backed defense cluster, which will now work with TNO on developing and testing advanced military technologies.

According to Fedorov, the cooperation aims to draw on top-tier expertise that Ukraine currently lacks. 

TNO employs thousands of scientists and engineers across disciplines such as artificial intelligence, radar systems, countering aerial threats, and unmanned aerial vehicles. 

Joint research centers will be set up to advance projects in these areas, while a separate track will focus on testing prototypes and products created by TNO experts.

“I am convinced that such partnerships are necessary for our industry to expand capacities and to create game-changers more quickly,” Fedorov emphasized. 

Ukraine, he noted, already has several success stories, including recent investments secured by the Brave1 participant Swarmer, which is developing drone swarms powered by artificial intelligence – the largest defense investment since the start of the war.

As The Gaze reported earlier, American funds have invested $15 million in Ukrainian defense startup Swarmer to produce drone systems for modern combat operations.