The Ukrainian defense industry has the potential to increase drone production by 40% as early as 2025. This was stated by the President of Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelensky, during an online address to participants of the GLOBSEC conference held in Prague.
This is reported by Kyiv24
Budget Constraints and Calls to Partners
The President emphasized that despite having the necessary production capacities, funding remains a key issue for Ukrainian drone manufacturers. The capabilities of the state budget do not match the production potential of the defense industry, which limits the pace of production growth.
“Ukraine is ready to increase drone production by 40 percent this year – we have the capacities. What we lack is funding. This needs to be addressed. I urge your countries to take drone production as seriously as we do. We all need to be faster in producing drones than our enemies,” Zelensky stated.
Additionally, the President noted that investments in defense technology are important not only for Ukraine but for all European countries. According to him, the war in Ukraine is driving the development of military technologies and creating new challenges for the security of the continent.
Technological Breakthrough and the Need for Support
Zelensky highlighted that modern military operations, particularly “Operation Spider,” demonstrate rapid changes in the field of defense technologies. Ten years ago, such attacks were impossible, but now technological progress is accelerating relentlessly, and no country can afford to fall behind in this area when it comes to national security.
Earlier, the President’s advisor on strategy, Oleksandr Kamyshin, reported that the state budget is unable to contract even half of the production capacities of FPV drones currently available in Ukraine.
According to the Ministry of Strategic Industries, the Ukrainian defense industry is capable of producing three times more weapons and military equipment than the state procurement allows. This further underscores the need for attracting additional financial resources to strengthen the country’s defense capabilities.