Why supporting Ukraine matters

In 2014, Russian troops invaded Ukraine and illegally annexed Ukraine’s Crimean Peninsula. Since then, Russia has continued to behave as an aggressor state within Ukraine’s Eastern borders. Their full-scale war against Ukraine is the greatest threat to freedom and democracy since WWII.

As Russia’s attacks on Ukraine increase, Ukraine innovates not only to defend its freedom and sovereignty, but to inform and shape the future of U.S. and allied security. It has emerged as a global leader in battlefield innovation. Despite the leadership Ukraine continuously demonstrates, the Ukrainian military often lacks the tools and resources to quickly implement identified solutions.

Spirit of America has been working with the U.S. military and U.S. Embassy in Kyiv to support Ukraine’s independence, freedom, and security since 2014. Since February 2022, we have delivered more than $73 million in nonlethal assistance. Our support strengthens the defense system protecting Ukrainian military and civilians alike — saving thousands of lives, protecting sovereignty, and strengthening democracy.

Spirit of America Regional Program Manager Matt Dimmick shakes hands with a Ukrainian soldier at a vehicle repair workshop (Photo by ISD Group for Spirit of America).

What does Spirit of America’s support in Ukraine look like?

As a private 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization and pioneer of national security philanthropy, Spirit of America is redefining public-private support to soldiers and civilians in Ukraine.

In the early months of the full-scale invasion, we supported large-scale mobilization and provided protective gear to keep Ukrainian soldiers safe. We helped them hold the line and liberate key terrain. In the second half of 2022 and into 2023, we shifted assistance to increase the effectiveness, mobility, and safety of Ukraine’s Special Operations and Territorial Defense Forces.

As Spirit of America became fully integrated at the highest levels of Ukrainian and U.S. military planning, we began identifying and delivering strategic, high-payoff assistance to help Ukraine defend its territory, save lives, and degrade Russian capabilities at scale.

We meet regularly with our U.S. military and Ukrainian military partners at all levels in Europe and Ukraine. Our partners at the Security Assistance Group – Ukraine and in U.S. Army Special Operations Command work with us to design programs to deliver new kinds of assistance, assess our impact, and identify emerging trends and needs.

Below are some of the projects we are currently working on:

Drone repair workshop for the 3rd Army Corps
Nearly 80% of drone interceptors require modification to remain effective. As a result, valuable systems sit idle for days, reducing operational capabilities at critical moments.

In the Ukrainian 3rd Army Corps, one of Ukraine’s most capable formations, soldiers were purchasing tools and spare drone parts out of their own pockets. Drone repairs were often piecemeal, and more serious work required sending drones to cities far from the front lines.

Recognizing this gap, Spirit of America partnered with the 3rd Army Corps to provide a fully equipped drone repair workshop to their Aquila regiment, which is responsible for roughly 200 kilometers of the frontline in the critical Kharkiv region. In just one month, over 2,000 drones passed through the Spirit of America-provided workshop for repair, optimization, or upgrade — dramatically increasing sortie rates and effectiveness. What once took days now takes hours.

A Ukrainian technician works on a drone in the drone repair workshop (Photo by Ukrainian Armed Forces 3rd Army Corps).

Today, the drone workshop is doing more than fixing equipment — it is saving lives. It increases the number of drones available for air defense, enhances their effectiveness, and enables continuous adaptation in an increasingly complex battlespace. For Ukrainian forces facing a numerically superior adversary, agility is everything. With the support of Spirit of America, that agility now has a dedicated home, one workshop at a time.

Hands-on medical training from leading U.S. surgeons
When a soldier is seriously injured, every minute matters. Medical teams that train together can respond faster and with greater confidence in emergencies. Strengthening collaboration among U.S., Ukrainian, and allied partners helps Ukraine maintain a reliable medical system and reduces strain on military operations, supports Ukraine’s resilience, and helps reinforce Ukraine’s partnerships around the world.

Ukraine employs skilled medical professionals but lacks consistent team-based training for high-pressure situations. To help Ukrainian doctors, nurses, and anesthesiologists operate as coordinated units during large-scale emergencies, Spirit of America is supporting a hands-on surgical training program for frontline medical teams in Ukraine, in partnership with Global Response Medicine, the Armed Forces of Ukraine, and leading medical institutions in the U.S. and Ukraine.

A multidisciplinary team of surgeons, nurses, and anesthesiologists work together during a simulated emergency scenario (Photo by Spencer Chumbley for Global Response Medicine).

As a result, Ukrainian medical teams will be able to work together more effectively under pressure, make faster decisions, and perform critical procedures more confidently — leading to more effective care that reduces preventable deaths and injuries. Over time, the program is expected to create a sustainable, Ukrainian-led training system that strengthens both military and civilian trauma care across the country, underpinning national and regional resilience in times of crisis.

Vehicle repair workshops
Drone units from Ukraine’s Unmanned Systems Forces operate near the frontline in dispersed, mobile formations, far from the nearest repair facility. Rough terrain and demanding combat missions result in shortages due to extended downtime for vehicles, launch platforms, and generators under continuous load, which reduces operational effectiveness and slows operational tempo.

In January 2026, Spirit of America delivered a mobile vehicle repair workshop to the 412th Brigade, in partnership with the Ukrainian Armed Forces. This mobile repair workshop is forward deployable and allows Ukrainian forces to efficiently repair equipment near the frontlines and remain operationally flexible.

The 412th Brigade’s mobile repair workshop (Photo by Spirit of America).

Since its delivery, it has completed 270 repairs and 209 maintenance jobs valued at $7.8MM, with a 124x return on investment with just one facility at a battalion-sized unit. Beyond the numbers, the ability to consistently repair vehicles provides an operational advantage to the 412th Brigade. The program sustains critical fleets and enables operational flexibility, performing upgrades and conversions of standard vehicles into interceptors, electronic warfare platforms, or ambulances.

Asymmetric impact: Spirit of America assistance to date

Spirit of America has delivered over $73 million in nonlethal, lifesaving assistance to protect Ukrainian soldiers and civilians.

Our investments are designed to produce asymmetric impact. Many of the projects we have supported have been scaled by the Ukrainian military or United States or are studied as a best practice by partners. For example, NATO is now studying Ukrainian battlefield innovations powered by Spirit of America-supported systems, which enabled Ukrainian teams to outperform NATO units during Exercise Hedgehog 2025 through real-time intelligence and rapid decision-making.

Our assistance delivered to date has included:

• 18,594 ballistic helmets and bulletproof vests
• 21,095 first aid kits and advanced trauma kits
• 21,620 tourniquets
• 33,000 ready-to-eat meals
• 2,076 mobile phones, tablets, laptops, and Starlinks to support a secure communications network
• 100 satellite phones
• 559 surveillance drones
• 10 drone jammers
• 1 drone repair workshop
• 241 trucks, cargo vans, SUVs, and 50-passenger buses
• 530 rebuilt military vehicles
• 30 unmanned ground and all-terrain vehicles
• 1 mobile vehicle repair workshop
• 34 industrial generators
• 12 mobile combat shower units
• 875 Territorial Defense Forces Captains Course graduates
• Binoculars, rangefinders, and other optical and sighting equipment
• Winter clothing, boots, and other apparel
• Rucksacks and other tactical gear
• Support for over 1,000 refugees in Poland, including families of Ukrainian soldiers

Additional examples of our work in action

Here are a few more examples of our work in Ukraine:

Repairing military vehicles to move and evacuate troops
On Ukraine’s front lines, there is a constant need for vehicles to move their troops, equipment, food, and medical supplies. To address this critical need — and to enhance Ukrainian Forces’ speed and maneuverability — Spirit of America partnered with the Territorial Defense Forces to renovate, refurbish, and repair thousands of unused, inoperable, Soviet-era trucks.

A Ukrainian mechanic works on rehabilitating an old military truck. (Photo by Spirit of America)

Just $4,000 in parts and repairs resulted in newly deployed trucks worth $80,000 each — a 20x ROI. Based on the project’s initial success using local mechanics to rebuild the trucks, the Ukrainian Armed Forces took over management of the program to fully integrate it into its wartime operations.

Spirit of America supported the repair of 530 military trucks that have been put in service — helping soldiers defend their freedom and demonstrating the creativity, initiative, and entrepreneurial spirit of Ukrainians.

Training captains from the Territorial Defense Forces (TDF)
Training directly impacts a soldier’s readiness and a unit’s success on the battlefield. It leads to better decision-making and fewer lives lost. “Train hard to fight easy” is a phrase we’ve often heard repeated by our partners in the Ukrainian Armed Forces.

There are more than 120,000 men and women serving in the Ukrainian TDF, but only 3% had any military experience or training before 2023. To increase their effectiveness as they defend their freedom, Spirit of America supported a training program for TDF officers, providing the funds needed to house and feed the officers and instructors, as well as the costs to cover the classroom equipment and basic training needs.

For six weeks, officers study the best practices of combat operations in NATO countries, taking into account Ukrainian military experience. After they graduate from the Captain’s Career Course, the officers immediately return to their units to resume the fight; over half of them will be back on the front line within two days of graduation.

A Ukrainian military officer works on his land navigation and map reading skills (Photo by Spirit of America).

The Captain’s Career Course has graduated 875 officers. With each Captain commanding a company of 100 soldiers, Spirit of America’s initial investment has impacted an estimated 48,000 soldiers. Due to its success in reducing casualties on the front lines, the Captain’s Career Course was hailed by President Zelenskyy and then-Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces General Zaluzhnyi as catalytic.

Empowering Ukrainian students through the UActive program
More than ever, Ukraine needs its younger generation to become active leaders in rebuilding and strengthening their communities. In collaboration with the Ukrainian nonprofit savED, Spirit of America is supporting Ukrainian high school students through the UActive program, which develops the leadership potential, creativity, and entrepreneurial spirit of Ukrainian students.

The UActive program is active in 85 schools and communities across Ukraine, focused primarily on places which were devastated by Russian occupation. Through the program, students in are taught valuable skills using a curriculum designed by Ukrainian experts: entrepreneurship, budgeting and project management, civics, emergency preparedness, and basic public speaking.

Over 1,130 teenage participants have completed UActive, which culminates in a pitching event where student teams compete for funding for community projects. These pitch competitions serve as an energizing and emotional conclusion to the UActive curriculum for Ukrainian students. Winning teams go on to implement and launch their projects, restoring their schools and communities one inspiring idea — and student — at a time.

Winning projects from the Kyiv, Chernihiv, and Mykolaiv regions have included youth spaces, a village’s first community gym, theaters and cultural centers, sports fields, and a rehabilitation center for students and wounded soldiers.

UActive participant Victor stands in front of a destroyed building in his community (Photo by ISD for Spirit of America).

Through UActive, these young Ukrainians are getting the skills and financial support necessary to help serve their country — to be agents of change, hope, and progress today and for the future.

Your support makes an immediate difference for Ukrainian soldiers and civilians. Help Ukraine secure its future by providing the resources needed to save and improve lives.