The UK has revealed for the first time that it is operating a network of military maintenance facilities inside Ukraine to repair battle-damaged equipment and return it to Ukrainian forces more quickly, the Ministry of Defence said.
According to the government, four sites are already operational and a fifth is planned. The facilities are run under MOD contracts by UK companies employing both British and Ukrainian staff and are designed to repair armoured vehicles, artillery systems and other equipment used by Ukrainian forces.
The sites repair equipment including UK-supplied CVR-T armoured vehicles, Husky support vehicles and L119 light guns, as well as former Soviet-era systems still used by Ukraine’s armed forces. They also support the AS-90 artillery systems donated by the UK, while collaboration with Swedish partners allows the facilities to help maintain Archer artillery systems.
The UK has been working to establish the repair infrastructure since Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022. Locating maintenance and overhaul facilities inside the country allows damaged equipment to be repaired locally rather than being transported abroad, reducing repair timelines and returning vehicles to Ukrainian units more quickly.
British engineers are working alongside Ukrainian personnel at the facilities to maintain and repair military equipment. Defence Minister for Readiness and Industry Luke Pollard visited one of the sites during a trip to Ukraine this week, where he met staff working to restore damaged vehicles and equipment for frontline use.
“While the world’s attention is focussed on conflict across the Middle East, the UK is standing firmer with our friends in Ukraine,” Pollard said. “From the factory floor to the frontline, the UK is standing with Ukraine. Our pioneering facilities are helping keep Ukraine’s defiant Armed Forces in the fight against Putin’s brutal attacks, and British firms are boosting long term industrial production in Ukraine and partnering with Ukrainian companies to benefit both our nations.”
During the visit, Pollard also led the seventh UK-organised defence trade mission to Ukraine, described by the government as the largest in the series so far. The mission involved more than 80 delegates and 55 companies, including a record 35 British firms, alongside international partners from Estonia, Finland, the Netherlands, Norway and Sweden.
The mission was organised by ADS Group, the UK trade association for the aerospace, defence, security and space sectors, and focused on strengthening industrial cooperation between British and Ukrainian defence companies.
The UK and Ukraine also signed an agreement under Programme Lyra, a technology exchange initiative agreed between Prime Minister Keir Starmer and President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in June 2025. The latest project will involve collaboration on UK electronic warfare technology integrated with Ukrainian platforms to improve Ukraine’s military capability.
The trade mission also marked the UK’s move towards a permanent presence supporting British industry in Ukraine. Plans include the opening of a new British Business Centre in Kyiv intended to deepen industrial cooperation and investment between the two countries.
Since Russia’s full-scale invasion in February 2022, the UK has committed more than £21 billion in support to Ukraine, making Britain one of Kyiv’s largest bilateral donors.
