Efforts by European arms companies to supply weapons to Ukraine and replenish their own stockpiles have been hampered by problems with the supply chain and lack of investment, the Financial Times newspaper reported with reference to experts.
Ian Peay, head of the European Association for Aerospace Defense (ASD), which represents more than 3,000 companies in 17 countries, said production levels were still low, particularly after decades of underinvestment in the industrial base of Europe. To support Ukraine, “it is necessary to buy and produce much more and much faster in Europe,”, he said.
Senior researcher at the Bruegel think tank Guntram Wolf noted that the West needs to step up. “We are talking about increasing the industrial capacity on the necessary scale”, he added.
To achieve this, industry leaders say longer investment contracts are needed. According to Nammo representative Vegard Sande, “a 10-year perspective is needed to attract the necessary capital and large investments in line with incoming orders.“
Saab CEO Mikael Johansson believes the industry “needs longer-term commitments from governments as it takes risks by increasing capacity without guaranteed long-term contracts.“
Johansson previously said that the implementation of the EU's defense industrial strategy requires at least EUR 100 billion.