Scaling up cooperation: EU and Ukrainian defense industries to coordinate actions
13 May 08:49
The European Union and Ukraine have agreed to set up a task force to deepen cooperation in the defense industry. This was reported by Ukrinform, citing a statement by Charles Fries, Deputy Secretary General of the European External Action Service, at the EU-Ukraine Defense Industry Forum in Brussels, "Komersant Ukrainian" reports.
It is noted that the Task Force will aim to eliminate technological and logistical constraints, in particular in the supply chain of electronic components, engines and certification of jointly produced products.
The new structure is expected to help scale up production of precision weapons systems, including drones and short-range missiles.
In his speech at the forum, Minister of Strategic Industries of Ukraine Herman Smetanin reminded that, in part due to the partnership with the European defense industry, the production potential of the Ukrainian defense industry increased from $12 billion to $35 billion last year. As a result, Ukraine now produces more than 30% of the weapons and ammunition used by the Defense Forces on the battlefield.
EU investments in Ukraine’s defense industry
On May 9, EU High Representative Kaja Kallas, who visited Lviv together with EU foreign ministers, announced that the EU would invest 1 billion euros in Ukraine’s defense industry.
As Charles Fries, Deputy Secretary General of the European External Action Service, explained, this money will be invested in Ukraine’s most modern defense industry, such as the production of drones and missiles. But, according to him, this is not all, as over the next two weeks the EU plans to allocate an additional 900 million euros to order weapons and ammunition for Ukraine, all of which will be financed by proceeds from frozen Russian assets.
These funds bring the total amount of EU assistance to Ukraine’s defense industry to €3.3 billion, making the EU the largest foreign public investor in Ukraine’s defense industry. This funding is complemented by investments from EU member states that provide direct financial support to Ukrainian companies to meet urgent defense needs.
In March, the European Union approved the European Rearmament Plan, an ambitious defense package that provides EU member states with financial leverage to increase investment in defense capabilities. One of the areas of European defense policy is to support Ukraine by increasing military aid and deepening the integration of the European and Ukrainian defense industries.
