In 2024, Ukraine caught up with Russia in terms of the number of production of kamikaze drones. In particular, analogues of the Shahed-131 and Shahed-136 , as well as other attack drones, Ukroboronprom Director General Herman Smetanin told ArmyInform in an interview.
"We have already signed a number of contracts with private manufacturers, mostly for licensed production. In particular, we are talking about the production of drones - private companies cannot provide the required quantity, so we sign a licence agreement and our companies are involved in the production," Smetanin said.
According to him, this has paid off, and in 2024 Ukraine caught up with Russia in terms of the number of production of kamikaze drones similar to Shahed-131 and Shahed-136, as well as in the production of other attack drones.
In addition, work on cooperation with private companies continues. A very large number of private development companies and scientists are involved in the development of new types of weapons.
"There are more innovative developments, and there are those that meet the needs of tomorrow. We urgently need to increase production, so we enter into cooperation with these manufacturers, and in this way we ensure the supply of the necessary weapons to the Armed Forces," added the head of Ukroboronprom.