United to win: Ukraine secures first contracts for purchase of military equipment by allies for armed forces
Photo: Telegram / Denys Shmyhal
Ukraine has already secured its first contracts, in which partner countries have purchased equipment from Ukraine for the Ukrainian army. The government is also looking to expand this cooperation.
Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal stated this during a panel discussion at the "Ukraine 2024. Independence" forum.
"If a year ago it was almost impossible to imagine that partners would purchase Ukrainian weapons in Ukraine for the Ukrainian army to protect our borders, today it is a reality. We have the first contracts when partners purchased Ukrainian equipment for Ukraine's armed forces. And they continue to do so to do. We are expanding this program," he said.
The Prime Minister also announced that the government has introduced additional products to support the defense industry. Specifically, Ukroboronprom is now issuing military bonds to bring in funds from the Ukrainian market.
"This is a short-lived resource. It allows us to manufacture equipment, and after that, the partners pay for the manufactured equipment. This approach is also already working; we have already introduced it and are making several more similar financial instruments together with our partners," the head of government said.
Shmyhal pointed out that currently, Ukraine has various weapons available in all areas – from artillery to drones, all of which are produced domestically. He also mentioned that the country is currently producing over 1 million drones and is continually expanding this production capacity.
"The second step we took was to open the market of our own ammunition for drones. Also, the relevant legislation and relevant resolutions adopted by the Cabinet of Ministers [Ukraine's government – ed.] and our parliament allow us to develop this market," he said.
Війська рф вперше атакували підстанції касетними ракетами, Україна втратила "дуже невелику" кількість обладнання, - Шмигаль
For reference:
Currently, Ukraine has 500 enterprises operating in the defense industry, including a significant number of private companies and state-owned ones. Overall, nearly 300,000 individuals are employed in the production of Ukrainian weapons.
President Volodymyr Zelensky said the Defense Ministry produces domestic projectiles, guns, mortars, armored vehicles, anti-tank complexes, EW systems, naval drones, and much more.
In particular, one million drones have already been contracted to Ukrainian manufacturers for this year.
According to the Ministry of Strategic Industries, Ukraine can produce 3 million drones of different types annually. However, additional funding is required.
Ukroboronprom enterprises are also scaling up the production of artillery shells and mortar mines and gradually moving to the production of NATO-caliber ammunition.
In 2024, Ukroboronprom debuted in the top 50 global defense companies.
