As Russian troops retreated into southern Ukraine, the Biden administration announced a series of new military aid packages for Ukraine, but all were missing a piece of weaponry that the Ukrainian military had long demanded: the Gray Eagle multi-role drone armed with Hellfire missiles. , writes CNN.

The U.S. is considering modifications that could be made to the deadly drone, modifications that would make it less dangerous if it fell into Russian hands and make Ukraine more likely to acquire it, two officials said.

“There are specific and very technical changes that could be made to them that could make this possible in the near term,” the congressional official said. “But these things take time and are quite complicated,” he added.

A US official confirmed that the military is trying to study possible modifications to the drone, which is made by General Atomics and is called the MQ-1C.

“When it comes to drones, this is the best,” said Seth Jones, director of the Homeland Security Program at the Center for Strategic and International Studies. “These are really sophisticated drones.”

However, without any changes, the Gray Eagle, which can carry four Hellfire missiles and can fly for almost 30 hours, will most likely not be on the lists of military aid to Ukraine. (more on CNN)

Follow the latest events of the 264th day of the war in Ukraine LIVETEXT on HOTNEWS.RO.