In the past year, many private manufacturers of heavy weapons and equipment have emerged in the defense industry. For the first time in Ukraine's history, the private sector has engaged in missile production.
This was announced by Anna Gvozdiar, the Deputy Minister of Strategic Industries of Ukraine, during the Defense Tech Valley investment forum.
“The traditional defense sector, as well as defense tech, is also advancing. Over the past year, we have seen a significant increase in private manufacturers of heavy weapons and equipment. For instance, we have become the world leader in the number of artillery systems produced per month,” Gvozdiar reported.
Ukraine has also seen the emergence of private manufacturers of armored vehicles, with some ramping up production to three units per month.
“Moreover, the private market now includes missile manufacturers, which has never happened before. The missile program was closed and was only handled by state enterprises. Today, we have a private market in this area. I consider this a significant step forward,” the Deputy Minister added.
According to her, the state's role in these projects is to support manufacturers, assist with specific components, and provide technical documentation that has been preserved since the Soviet era.
“We either help businesses establish partnerships with existing state manufacturers that have experience in this field, or they are generally eager to collaborate,” Anna Gvozdiar noted.
