With Donald Trump returning to The White House in 2025 and pledging to “stop wars”, there’s great uncertainty around his next move in foreign policy. Ukraine would suffer greatly if he cuts U.S. military aid and financial support through NATO. It remains to be seen if European allies increase their support, or even hold fast on previous commitments. One thing is certain though: The nature of war is changing quickly and Ukraine’s expertise in electronic warfare could provide its allies with the opportunity to benefit from these battle-tested capabilities.
Ukraine has a thriving defense-tech ecosystem, which until now, has been funded by the government. But that can’t last forever. By relaxing or lifting export bans on Ukraine, the West has an opportunity to benefit from the lessons Ukraine has had to learn in order to protect itself from swarms of weaponized drones. This would also enable Ukraine to replace the economic losses from its agricultural industry and put defense at the heart of its rebuild.
