In 2023, the enterprises of the Ukrainian Defence Industry (Ukroboronprom) doubled their production in monetary terms. In terms of units, these companies produced more than 600,000 units of various weapons and equipment - a thousand more than the year before.
But the needs are still higher than the production volumes - not only of the entire defence industry of Ukraine, but also of most countries in the world. Ukroboronprom CEO Herman Smetanin said this during the discussion "How to win the war: prospects for Ukrainian industry" organised by LB.ua and EFI Group.
He emphasised that we are at war with a country that spends enormous amounts of money from the budget on arms purchases.
"Only a few countries in the world can compete with it, which can afford such expenditures," Smetanin said.
Ukraine hopes to increase its own production with the help of partner countries. "We are ready for contracting, ready to increase production volumes every month," Smetanin added.
- Andriy Lebedenko, Deputy Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, believes that a breakthrough is possible only with a help of technology. He explained that Ukraine is currently working to improve communication between the army, manufacturers and research and development institutions to meet the technological needs of the army.
- Hanna Hvozdyar, Deputy Minister for Strategic Industries, believes that innovation and technological development are the key to victory, but that we should not forget about traditional weapons, the production of which needs to be increased.