Ukraine may allow export of domestic weapons for development of drone industry — FT
Ukraine is considering the possibility of lifting the ban on the export of domestic weapons. Kyiv seeks to increase the scale of weapons production to match Russia's capabilities on the battlefield, The Financial Times reported, citing its own sources.
The lifting of the ban on the export of Ukrainian weapons can bring Ukrainian arms manufacturers up to $20 billion in profit, which will allow increasing domestic production for the army.
The FT writes that after the start of Russia’s full-scale invasion in 2022, Ukraine banned the export of military goods, as it seeks to provide its army with everything it needs.
However, the Ukrainian government lacks money to purchase all the necessary types of weapons, particularly drones, and to invest in further research and development. Therefore, allowing companies to export surplus products is now widely seen as a way to attract investors.
At the same time, Russia has significantly intensified the production of weapons, and participants of the Ukrainian industry estimate Russia's advantage in combat drones as 5-10 to 1.
Dmytro Khasapov, CEO of the Ukrspetssystem company, told the FT that the Ukrainian military is experiencing a "colossal" shortage of drones, and his company does not receive a sufficient number of government orders for its production facilities: "The state does not have the funds to buy them."
This year's budget for the purchase of weapons, in particular from domestic manufacturers, is $6 billion out of $40 billion allocated to the defense sector. Next year, it is proposed to allocate 2.2 trillion hryvnias ($53.4 billion) for the Ukrainian defense industry, and the budget for the production of weapons is planned to increase by 65% to 300 billion hryvnias ($7.3 billion).
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