The US will not give Ukraine Gray Eagle strike drones to avoid escalation with Russia – WSJ
The administration of US President Joe Biden will not provide advanced MQ-1C Gray Eagle drones to Ukraine, despite requests from Kyiv and a bipartisan group of members of Congress. This was reported by The Wall Street Journal with reference to US officials.
As noted, Kyiv’s application to receive Gray Eagle strike drones was considered by the White House for several months.
However, the Pentagon rejected the request due to concerns that providing the MQ-1C Gray Eagle drones could escalate the war and signal to Moscow that the US is providing weapons that could target positions on Russian soil.
US officials were also concerned that Gray Eagle technology could be stolen if the drone was shot down. But these fears, according to sources, were not the main reason for the refusal.
A spokesman for General Atomics, which makes Gray Eagle, confirmed that the company had been informed of the decision, but declined to comment on the details. Pentagon and White House officials did not respond to a request for comment.
- On September 21, the Pentagon published a list of contracts concluded with defense sector companies within the framework of assistance to Ukraine, which includes an order for Switchblade 600 kamikaze attack drones.
- On September 22, a group of US lawmakers appealed to the Pentagon to send advanced MQ-1C Gray Eagle or MQ-9A Reaper drones to Ukraine.
