The 7th Rapid Reaction Corps of the Ukrainian Armed Forces is launching a research and engineering center to create military technologies with an anonymous partner. The focus is on electronic warfare systems, drones, air defense, and secure communications.
The 7th Rapid Reaction Corps of the Ukrainian Armed Forces is launching a research and engineering center to create military technologies with an anonymous partner. The focus is on electronic warfare systems, drones, air defense, and secure communications.
The corps' plans were reported by «Military» with reference to an interview with Viktor Kordon, head of the 7th Corps' radio-electronic and cyber warfare department, at the Defense Tech Valley exhibition.
According to him, the center will carry out a full cycle of work: from technical specifications and prototyping to testing and combat use, and the unit is ready to cooperate with various companies and provide them with full engineering and tactical feedback.
The priority is electronic warfare (EW) equipment for detecting and suppressing UAV control and guidance channels, modular unmanned platforms (reconnaissance, strike, interception), short- and medium-range air defense elements, as well as resilient communication systems between units on the front line. Kordon emphasized that the corps is «open to partnerships» and is looking for teams that are ready to quickly implement solutions at the front.
Special attention is paid to building a unified network to counter enemy drones. The DShV already has a centralized system with its own electronic warfare control points: intelligence data from various sources converge there, after which automated software helps to choose a neutralization method: radio suppression or destruction by air defense targets/interceptors. According to Cordon, such an organization allows to neutralize up to 90% of enemy UAVs approaching the defense line.
The creation of the R&D center is designed to accelerate the «need-solution» cycle: the corps seeks to obtain prototypes that can be quickly integrated into the troops, scaled up and accompanied by field upgrades. For private teams and manufacturers, this means access to real-world application scenarios, rapid iterations and clear requirements for survivability, interoperability and cost.
R&D structures in combat brigades have become a response to the dynamics of drone and electronic warfare, where advantage is determined by the speed of adaptation. Their own centers allow troops to form performance characteristics «bottom-up», test equipment on the battlefield, and quickly scale the best solutions through standard modules and integration standards. The 7th DShV Corps is betting on this model, combining military demand with private sector engineering.
Previously, dev.ua wrote about how the Ukrainian defense technology cluster Brave1 signed its first international R&D partnership with the leading Dutch research organization TNO. The agreement was signed during the Defense Tech Valley 2025 investment summit.
