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US and Iran Control 85 Percent of Global Military Drone Exports
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Firstpost•08-10-2026, 16:06
US and Iran Control 85 Percent of Global Military Drone Exports
- •The United States and Iran dominated the global military drone trade from 2022 to 2025, accounting for roughly 85 per cent of all exported military drones according to SIPRI data.
- •The US led global exports with 7,593 drones representing a 45.1 per cent share, while Iran closely followed with 6,800 drones accounting for 40.4 per cent of the total.
- •The export figures heavily reflect the Ukraine war as approximately 95 per cent of US drone exports went to Ukraine and 99 per cent of Iran's shipments were supplied to Russia.
- •One-way attack drones and loitering munitions made up 97 per cent of all exported military drones globally, with Iran's shipments consisting almost entirely of Shahed-136 drones.
- •Turkiye ranked fifth in volume with 381 exported drones but maintained the widest customer base supplying 28 countries, and ranked as the world's largest exporter when measuring military capability transferred.
Key Questions Answered
The United States and Iran dominated the global military drone trade from 2022 to 2025, accounting for approximately 85 percent of all exported military drones combined.
The export patterns reflected the sharply divided nature of the Ukraine war, with around 95 percent of US drone exports going to Ukraine and 99 percent of Iran's exports being supplied to Russia.
Türkiye ranked fifth by volume for drone exports but had the widest customer base, supplying military drones to 28 countries between 2022 and 2025.
