On Monday, April 27, 2026, on the first day of the two-day Road to URC “Security and Defense Dimension” conference at Rzeszów University of Technology, Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk met with Ukrainian Prime Minister Yulia Svyrydenko. The head of the Polish government stated: “A Polish drone armada, combining European money, Polish companies and research centers, and Ukrainian battlefield expertise. The project was launched today in Rzeszów.”
Photos: Chancellery Of Prime Minister Of Republic Of Poland
As stated on the organizer’s website, the conference in the area of security and defense is devoted to defense issues, in particular the arms industry. The Rzeszów conference is a direct prelude to the international Ukraine Recovery Conference, URC 2026, the world’s largest forum dedicated to Ukraine’s reconstruction, which this year will take place in June in Gdańsk.
The main objective of both events is to present Poland’s technological potential and establish business relations crucial for defense and the future reconstruction of the Ukrainian state, as well as to discuss modern technologies, aviation, and unmanned systems. In Rzeszów, the technological potential of Polish companies in the area of security and defense is being presented, including solutions supporting Ukraine’s reconstruction. The conference includes panel discussions with representatives of governments and Polish, Ukrainian, and European business.
As part of preparations for the Ukraine Recovery Conference 2026, a new fifth area of cooperation – the Security and Defense Dimension – was introduced at the initiative of the Polish side. The conference in Rzeszów is therefore the first high-level event devoted to this area and one of the key elements of preparations for URC 2026.
The conference is organized by the City of Rzeszów, Rzeszów University of Technology, the PRZ-CONNECT Rzeszów University of Technology Support Association, and the Industrial Development Agency.
After meeting with Donald Tusk, Ukrainian Prime Minister Yulia Svyrydenko wrote:
Today, during our meeting with Prime Minister Donald Tusk, I thanked the Polish people for their consistent support of Ukraine.
It is symbolic that the meeting took place in Rzeszów – a city that has welcomed thousands of Ukrainians since the beginning of the full-scale invasion and was granted the honorary title of “Rescuer City” by the President of Ukraine.
Ukrainian-Polish cooperation has a broad and active agenda. We focused primarily on defense, energy, bilateral trade, and the development of border and logistics infrastructure. In the near future, we expect the signing of an agreement on joint control at shared border crossing points and the resolution of technical issues related to the registration of Ukrainian carriers in the SENT/RMPD system.
We are strengthening cooperation between our two major energy firms Naftogaz and ORLEN.
I thanked the Prime Minister for his personal contribution to unlocking the 20th sanctions package and the €90 billion EU loan. It is important for us that the first tranche arrives as soon as possible to support our defense capabilities and budgetary needs.
We also expect the swift opening of negotiations on all clusters in the context of Ukraine’s EU accession.
I am grateful to Poland for preparing this year’s Ukraine Recovery Conference in Gdańsk. For my part, I invited Mr. Prime Minister to take part in the Fourth International Summit of Cities and Regions of Ukraine, which will be held in Kyiv in May ahead of URC 2026.
A Polish drone armada?
Donald Tusk’s declaration is rather enigmatic. However, it is worth recalling that during negotiations on the transfer to Ukraine of the MiG-29 fighter aircraft still remaining in service, in December 2025 the General Staff of the Polish Armed Forces declared that, in return, Ukraine was ready to provide Poland with selected drone and missile technologies.
It should be recalled that the deputy prime minister and minister of national defense discussed cooperation in unmanned systems with Ukrainian partners during a visit to Kyiv on September 18 last year. During a visit to Brussels on October 15, where he attended a meeting of NATO defense ministers and a meeting of the Foreign Affairs Council in the defense ministers’ format (FAC Defence), he signed a letter of intent with then-Ukrainian Defense Minister Denys Shmyhal on cooperation between the defense industries.
In the meantime, on October 7, the 3rd International Defence Industries Forum was held in Kyiv, where Poland was represented by a Ministry of National Defense delegation headed by Secretary of State Paweł Bejda. The purpose of the visit was to further strengthen Polish-Ukrainian defense cooperation.
Polska armada dronowa czyli europejskie pieniądze, polskie firmy i centra badawcze oraz ukraińskie kompetencje z pola walki. Projekt wystartował dziś w Rzeszowie.
— Donald Tusk (@donaldtusk) April 27, 2026
[🇵🇱] W Rzeszowie trwa konferencja Road to URC – Security and Defence Dimension z udziałem Chargé d’affaires RP w Ukrainie @P_Lukasiewicz.
🤝 Premierzy @donaldtusk i @Svyrydenko_Y otworzyli wydarzenie.
💬 Zapowiedziano współpracę PL–UA przy rozwoju technologii dronowych. pic.twitter.com/chwqoLXADU— PLinUkraine (@PLinUkraine) April 27, 2026
Today, during our meeting with Prime Minister Donald Tusk, I thanked the Polish people for their consistent support of Ukraine.
It is symbolic that the meeting took place in Rzeszów – a city that has welcomed thousands of Ukrainians since the beginning of the full-scale… pic.twitter.com/OCLtJBVG74
— Yulia Svyrydenko (@Svyrydenko_Y) April 27, 2026
Rzeszów – dziś centrum rozmów o współpracy polsko-ukraińskiej.
Ważne ogłoszenie @donaldtusk o armadzie dronów.Od początku pracy nad SAFE mówiliśmy, że interesuje nas pozyskanie najnowszych technologii dronowych. Konsekwentnie z @KosiniakKamysz i @CTomczyk realizujemy te… pic.twitter.com/HhmHyZAmQW
— Magdalena Sobkowiak (@magdasobkowiak) April 27, 2026