Ukraine, together with partner countries, has established CORPUS (Coalition for Resilient Procurement and Unified Support) – a multinational coalition in the field of defense logistics. It includes the DOT (State Operator for Non-Lethal Acquisition) Defense Procurement Agency of the Ministry of Defense and procurement agencies of partner countries – Finland, Italy, Norway, Sweden, and the United Kingdom, UNN reports with reference to the Ministry of Defense.
What functions CORPUS will perform
According to the Ministry, the goal of CORPUS is to become a permanent platform for strengthening the defense capabilities of Ukraine and its partners, as well as to unite procurement agencies for better coordination, increasing the resilience of supply systems, and developing cooperation in the face of security changes.
CORPUS will become an extensive system of procurement agencies from partner countries. This will allow for better procurement planning, the formation of reliable supply chains, and the identification of weak links. It will also facilitate the exchange of experience, solutions, and tools, strengthening one another
Interaction between agencies will take place at the operational level – through the exchange of solutions regarding market engagement, digital tools, anti-corruption and compliance practices, as well as the organization of supplies.
At the same time, the coalition remains open to other partner countries, provided they join the Memorandum and receive unanimous support from the Board of Directors.
Today, supply systems operate under conditions of rapid change and common threats, which requires closer coordination between countries. We are already cooperating with partners at a practical level, and CORPUS is the next step in the development of this interaction
Why CORPUS is important for Ukraine and partners
According to Arsen Zhumadilov, for Ukraine, this initiative is an opportunity to scale the experience of supplying the military formed during the full-scale war, and for partners – to gain access to practical solutions that are already working in real-world conditions.
Partners have shown particular interest in the DOT's IT solutions, which the Ministry of Defense is implementing as part of the department's overall digital transformation. These tools have already proven their effectiveness in practice. Specifically, this refers to the DOT-Chain digital ecosystem: the DOT-Chain Defense weapons marketplace, the DOT-Chain Food nutrition management system, and the DOT-Chain Arsenal operational-level supply management system.
Digitalization has made it possible to speed up supplies, make processes more manageable, and base decision-making on data.
The Ministry of Defense added that Zhumadilov will lead CORPUS during the first year. Subsequently, the chairmanship will be held on a rotational basis by unanimous decision of the participants.