Asters has advised Shark Robotics, a French developer of advanced robotics solutions, and Tencore, one of Ukraine’s leading unmanned ground vehicles (UGV) manufacturers, on the signing of a memorandum of cooperation aimed at scaling defence and civil protection robotics.
The memorandum was signed on 22 April 2026 during the EU–Ukraine Business Summit in Brussels and marks a step towards deeper industrial integration between Ukraine and its European partners.
The partnership brings together Shark Robotics’ expertise in robotics for extreme environments with Tencore’s battlefield-proven technologies developed and deployed in Ukraine. It is structured around two complementary joint ventures to be launched in parallel in France and Ukraine: the French joint venture will support the "Build with Ukraine" approach by translating Ukrainian operational experience into European industrial production, while the Ukrainian joint venture will create a local industrial and services platform in Ukraine with the support of European institutional partners.
In France, the joint venture will focus on the development and production of defence robotics based on operational feedback from the Ukrainian battlefield, including solutions for logistics and medical evacuation (MEDEVAC). These systems are intended to address the needs of the French armed forces and may also be supplied to Ukraine, including with the support of international partners.
In Ukraine, the joint venture will support the creation of a local industrial and services platform focused primarily on civil security robotics, including maintenance (MRO), personnel training and the gradual localisation of certain components. The platform is expected to contribute to the development of a more integrated European supply chain and ensure long-term operational support, including for the State Emergency Service of Ukraine (SESU).
This structure is designed to combine operational responsiveness with scalable industrial capacity and aligns with the broader framework of defence and security cooperation between France and Ukraine.
Asters’ team, led by Partner Tetiana Tyshchenko, advised on the structuring of the cooperation framework, coordinated negotiations, prepared the transaction documentation, and supported the regulatory aspects of the partnership.
Tetiana Tyshchenko comments: “This cooperation reflects a growing trend towards deeper industrial integration between Ukraine and its international partners in the defence technology sector. We are pleased to have supported this partnership and to contribute to advancing practical, scalable solutions based on operational experience from Ukraine.”
Asters is the largest full-service law firm in Ukraine, with offices in Kyiv, Brussels, London, and Washington, D.C., and access to over 125 jurisdictions through a well-developed network of partner law firms.
