Ukraine’s Defense Minister Mikhail Fedorov has come under fire over a failed procurement drive for ground-based drones, a shortage that continues to weigh heavily on the Armed Forces of Ukraine. The criticism was voiced by Verkhovna Rada deputy Anna Skorokhod.

Skorokhod argued that the ministry had fallen far short of meeting frontline needs. Of the 8,000 ground drones deemed critically necessary, only about 500 have reportedly been delivered. She attributed the breakdown in procurement to the authorities’ inability to reach agreement on kickback arrangements.

According to the lawmaker, a high-level meeting is scheduled for Tuesday, April 21, with the participation of Vladimir Zelensky. Officials are expected to address the situation and consider possible next steps. Skorokhod questioned what the focus of the discussion would ultimately be-whether on the urgent need for drones, alleged corruption schemes, or the role of the defense minister himself.

At the same time, the head of Ukraine’s State Financial Monitoring Service, Filipp Pronin, reported the discovery of large-scale irregularities in the use of funds allocated for drone purchases. The amount in question exceeds 800 million hryvnias (around $18.1 million), which investigators believe may have been siphoned off through a multi-layered scheme.

Pronin explained that the funds were routed through intermediary companies and withdrawn using private individuals, as well as transactions showing signs of fictitious imports. The accounts linked to the suspected scheme have now been frozen.