As of: April 4, 2024, 5:00 a.m
By: Bona Hyun
Comments
Press
Split
After several years of war, weapons and ammunition are becoming increasingly scarce in Ukraine. The Ukrainian defense industry is lagging behind in production.
Kiev - In the Ukraine war, Volodymyr Zelensky's troops increasingly relied on home-made weapons. In 2023 alone, Ukrainian defense companies built three times as many armored vehicles as before the war and quadrupled the production of anti-tank missiles. This emerges from documents available to the
New York Times
. But the Ukrainian defense industry still faces major challenges: time is short and the need for ammunition is growing.
Defense industry in Ukraine: Procurement of ammunition is a major challenge
Ammunition in particular is difficult to produce in Ukraine. Ukraine will receive local support for the production of 155-millimeter artillery ammunition for the war against Russia. Europe's largest ammunition manufacturer Rheinmetall wants to produce a six-figure number of the artillery calibers in question in the Ukrainian production facility that is still to be built.
A Ukrainian artilleryman prepares grenades and propellants for a field howitzer from US stocks. © dpa
But the production and procurement of ammunition is particularly difficult and is apparently stalling. This doesn’t just apply to production in Ukraine. “It takes time for a new ammunition factory to start operations and reach full capacity. There are the processing times for building applications for new factories. Preliminary materials must be procured,” said security expert Rafael Loss in an interview with the
Tagesschau
. Europe must increase the production of artillery ammunition and all other armaments. “Western countries decided on this too late – and progress is only going slowly.”
Ukrainian defense industry relies on Western help
According to the
New York Times,
Ukraine must, above all, expand its arms industry more if the country wants to become less dependent on Western arms supplies. Whether this can happen in time to change the course of a war remains to be seen. Experts are sure that this will not be possible in the foreseeable future.
The Ukrainian defense industry is currently heavily dependent on help from the West. Ukraine is particularly relying on aid from the EU and the United States. "If the Europeans participate in (munitions) development to the extent they promised, I think we will solve the problem of 'grenade hunger' over time," Oleksandr Syrskyi, commander of the Ukrainian Armed Forces, said in a recent statement published interview with Ukrainian state media.
The defense industry in Ukraine is lagging behind – the need for ammunition is growing
However, the question arises as to when the West will be able to meet Ukraine's ammunition needs. There are already fears that this will only happen in a few years. Economist Guntram Wolff expects that the EU will not be able to cover Ukraine's ammunition needs until 2026 at the earliest. The EU has already had to admit that it cannot keep its ammunition promise to Ukraine. By March they had actually promised Ukraine a million rounds of artillery ammunition.
My news
1500 euros per month - Citizen's benefit recipient emphasizes: "It's just too much money for my standards" read
WhatsApp disruption: Tens of thousands of people cannot use Messenger
Contribution service sends letters to thousands of households - if you don't respond, you risk being fined
“Accumulation of vehicles” spotted: Russia’s army is moving new tanks to Crimea
“That touched a nerve”: Breakfast café has to close shortly after opening – due to too many guests reading
Pensions in Germany: Voluntary additional payments reach record highs
Additionally, no major American arms manufacturer has announced plans to open production lines in Ukraine, according to Ukrainian and American officials. But that could soon change: Some senior U.S. leaders have
visited Kiev in recent weeks to meet with Alexander Kamyshin, Minister of Strategic Industries, and other officials, according to
the New York Times .
Russia produces around three times as much ammunition as the USA and EU combined
Meanwhile, Vladimir Putin has shifted Russia’s economy into “war economy” mode. On the one hand, he has increased military spending, which will stimulate economic growth but at the same time will have disastrous long-term consequences for the Russian economy.
On the other hand, Russia is apparently increasing production capacities in the defense industry. According to
CNN
, Russia is expected to produce around 250,000 pieces of artillery ammunition per month, or 3 million per year. The USA and Europe together only produce around 1.2 million units per year.
CNN
relies on information from NATO intelligence and information from high-ranking intelligence officials. (bohy)