Minister of Defense confirms more weapons commitments, weapons production after foreign visit

A meeting with Western defense partners produced “concrete results” for Ukraine, Defense Minister Rustem Umerov reported on October 13.

Umerov visited colleagues from France, Britain, Italy and Germany as part of a delegation led by President Volodymyr Zelensky.

“(All) four countries have confirmed that investments in Ukraine’s defense industrial complex will grow,” Umerov said via Telegram.

Britain pledged to supply additional long-range weapons, artillery systems and robotic systems, while French President Emmanuel Macron discussed the possibility of opening a training center for drone operators in France, the announcement said.

Frozen Russian assets will be used to finance Ukraine’s defense needs, Umerov said.

“We discussed specific steps to increase weapons production – both in Ukraine and through the creation of joint ventures with our European partners,” Umerov said.

“This will make it possible to manufacture equipment, weapons and ammunition for the armed forces within a fundamentally new collaborative format.”

Kiev now wants to become a world leader in the defense sector, but with its economy depleted by the war, the country needs foreign investment and partnerships to achieve this goal.

According to government estimates, Ukraine has the capacity to produce about $20 billion worth of weapons and equipment, but the state budget can only finance about $6 billion.

Foreign companies are increasingly making deals to jointly produce weapons in Ukraine, including 155 grenades, loitering ammunition and specialty chemicals.

Earlier this month, Zelensky highlighted that Ukraine has exponentially increased domestic ammunition production over the past two years and successfully tested its own ballistic missiles.

“In the first half of this year alone, Ukraine produced 25 times more artillery and mortar ammunition than in the entire year of 2022,” Zelenskiy said.

“We believe that in five years the Ukrainian defense sector will attract half a billion dollars;” Q&A with foreign defense investors

Ukraine has become a hotbed of defense innovation as Russia’s deadly invasion spurs rapid development of new battlefield technologies. Kiev now wants to become a world leader in the defense sector, but with its economy depleted by the war, the country needs foreign investment to achieve its goal. Ukraine…