Burnham Gives Kyiv British Drone-Jamming Tech Rights
Britain has transferred intellectual property rights for its Stone Cloak drone-jamming technology to Ukraine, allowing licensed manufacturing under a 100-year partnership agreement.
Prime Minister Andy Burnham announced the transfer of Stone Cloak electronic warfare system technology to Ukraine during his first meeting with a foreign leader since taking office, according to Brussels Signal. The meeting took place on July 27, 2026, aboard the aircraft carrier HMS Queen Elizabeth at Portsmouth naval base on England’s south coast.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky was received for talks that sealed Ukraine’s status as the first country authorised to manufacture the British-designed system under licence. Stone Cloak is a tablet-sized device mounted on long-range drones that disrupts Russian air defences, making the aircraft significantly harder to detect and shoot down.
The British Ministry of Defence has already delivered thousands of the units to Ukrainian forces. The system was developed under the terms of a 100-year partnership agreement signed between London and Kyiv in January 2025.
Burnham, who assumed office on July 20, 2026, characterised the technology transfer as representing the very best of British innovation. Downing Street confirmed that operational data gathered from Ukrainian battlefield use would feed directly into the continued development of Stone Cloak and inform Project Brakestop, Britain’s programme to develop low-cost cruise missiles capable of striking targets beyond 500 kilometres.
Zelensky used the Portsmouth meeting to press for additional interceptors capable of downing Russian ballistic missiles, warning that Moscow was ramping up production. Russia has escalated strikes on gas facilities, power plants, and other critical infrastructure throughout this year in a sustained campaign targeting Ukraine’s energy grid and logistics networks.
Joint Naval Training and Black Sea Preparations
The two leaders also met with approximately 200 Ukrainian personnel participating in a three-week exercise focused on maritime security and mine countermeasures. The training is designed to prepare Ukrainian forces for future operations in the Black Sea. Zelensky confirmed on X that discussions had also encompassed joint defence production initiatives.
Britain has provided £25 billion (€28 billion) in total support to Ukraine since 2022, including £16 billion (€18 billion) in direct military assistance, Downing Street stated. Burnham indicated he intends to visit Ukraine in the near future.
Washington Visit and Wider Diplomatic Context
Zelensky was scheduled to travel to Washington on July 28, 2026, for discussions with US President Donald Trump and to attend the funeral of Senator Lindsey Graham. At the NATO summit held in Ankara on July 8, Trump told the Ukrainian leader that Kyiv would be permitted to manufacture American-designed Patriot air defence systems.
Burnham is the fifth British prime minister Zelensky has worked with since Russia launched its full-scale invasion in February 2022, and the seventh person to hold the office in a decade.
United States-led ceasefire efforts have stalled as Washington’s focus has shifted toward the conflict in Iran. The Russian foreign ministry stated that Moscow remains receptive to new proposals, though the Kremlin said it had received no concrete details ahead of Zelensky’s departure for the United States.
With information from Brussels Signal
