WSJ “General Atomics offers to sell in Ukraine on conditions such as transportation costs”
The Wall Street Journal (WSJ) reported on the 31st (local time) that the US defense company, General Atomics, offered to sell two Reaper MQ-9 drones to Ukraine for $1.00.
The WSJ said General Atomics CEO Linden Blue sent a letter to Ukraine’s defense attache in Washington last week and made the offer, saying the offer also included a ground control station where these drones could be operated anywhere.
However, the cost of preparing and shipping these drones to Ukraine is 10 million dollars (about 12.3 billion earned) and maintenance costs of about 8 million dollars (about 9.86 billion earned won) per year are paid by the Ukrainian government.
The drone that General Atomics offered to sell for $1 is the ‘Reaper MQ-9A Block 1’, which is known to cost millions of dollars per unit.
General Atomics also said in the proposal that it would initially train Ukrainian military officers to operate the drones at its California facility, at the company’s expense.
Neither the White House nor the Ukrainian government declined to comment on the proposal, the WSJ said, but the sale of these drones would require US government approval.
However, General Atomics spokesman C. Mark Brinkley said, “General Atomics has been discussing Ukraine’s military requirements with the government for several months and is committed to assisting Ukraine in any way possible.”
The United States has so far provided Ukraine with more than 700 self-destructive attack drones called “Switchblades,” but advanced drones such as the “Gray Eagle,” manufactured by General Atomics and used by the US military, due to concerns that technology will be leaked if shot down, has been reluctant
The Reaper MQ-9 belongs to an older model than the Gray Eagle, but it belongs to a high-tech drone with excellent flight distance and speed.
The WSJ added that selling these drones to Ukraine requires technology transfer approval from the Biden administration, but General Atomics is proposing to sell Reaper drones directly to the Ukrainian government rather than through the US government.
/happy news
