The European Union is gradually moving from a permanent donor to Ukraine to a program of development of its own defense industry in Ukraine. This was reported by The Washington Post.
Details
The publication emphasizes that the EU's decision to allocate $440 million to Ukraine to support the defense industry "marks a significant shift" in the bloc's approach to the war.
In addition, it emphasizes the shortcomings of the EU defense sector in the production of weapons and ammunition.
One European diplomat said that Europe "is not able to produce the weapons that Ukraine needs," and the easiest way to fill the deficit is to "make them ourselves.
If Ukrainians have the materials and money, they can make it (weapons - ed.) much faster themselves
The EU explains that investment in Ukraine's defense industry "provides more flexibility" and "creates more opportunities for Ukraine in the short term." In addition, it also reduces pressure on defense production in Western countries.
At the same time, he acknowledged that investments in the domestic defense industry "will not replace large-scale supplies of Western-made weapons to Ukraine.
The journalists emphasize that previously Ukraine's defense industry simply could not absorb significant amounts of funding. But the country tripled its arms production in 2023, and then doubled it in the first eight months of this year. At least these are the figures cited by the country's political leadership.
For example, Defense Minister Rustem Umerov said that this year the country's arms industry will receive about $4 billion. However, Economy Minister Yulia Svyrydenko says that Ukraine's defense sector has the capacity to produce much more - about $10-12 billion.
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According to WP, the funds for the development of the Ukrainian defense industry will come from profits from frozen Russian assets in the West. Another part of the amount will be allocated by the Danish government. It is planned that the money will be used to produce missiles, drones and other long-range weapons.
It is also expected that financing of the Ukrainian defense industry by partners may increase significantly in the near future.
There are a number of countries that, as far as I know, are close to announcing the use of the same mechanism in the future, either by investing themselves or asking Denmark to invest their money
However, even with external injections, Ukraine's arms sector is still far from being able to compete with the production of Russia, one of the world's leading arms manufacturers.
Ukraine still needs significant Western assistance over the next few years to defend itself against Russian aggression and liberate strategically vital territories currently occupied by Russian forces
Recall
Ukraine's Defense Minister Rustem Umerov met with his French counterpart Sébastien Lecornu. They discussed training of the Ukrainian military, supply of equipment and weapons, as well as production of weapons and ammunition.