Our Drone Defense Fundraiser for Ukraine is Complete

TIMOTHY SNYDER

AUG 17, 2024

Today I wanted to announce some very good news. 

Throughout Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, Russians have fired cruise missiles and drones at civilians and civilian infrastructure throughout Ukraine.  The aim is to instill terror and to destroy electricity generation and water supplies.

An innovative Ukrainian response is Safe Skies, an early-warning detection system that allows for a rapid reaction to drones and cruise missiles.  For more than a year, as an ambassador for United 24, President Zelens’kyi’s fundraising platform, I have helped to raise funds for this program.  I visited one of the sites and saw some of the technology at work, as well as the impressive cooperation between the Ministry of Digital Transformation and the armed forces. 

Many of you have contributed.

The goal was to raise enough money to build sensors that would protect eight regions of Ukraine.  This has now been achieved. 

With the help of colleagues (thanks Timothy Garton Ash, Rory Finnan, Francis Fukuyama, Serhii Plokhy) who also publicized Safe Skies, we raised nearly two million dollars by the end of March.  The anchor of this was thousands of small donations from around the world.  A few of United 24’s corporate partners then pitched in as well. 

The final total raised for Safe Skies is $2,347,900. 

I am very proud of this, and I hope all of you who contributed are too.  This is not just a big number: it means equipment that has saved and will save lives.

The Safe Skies fundraiser has allowed Ukrainians to install thousands of sensors throughout eight regions.  So our work is done. The fundraiser, as of today (17 August 2024), is closed.

But: watch this space! 

Tomorrow is my 55th birthday.  And I hear that my friends at United 24 (and my fellow ambassador Mark Hamill) have a nice surprise in store.