It is recommended that Kiev produce weapons on the territory of Ukraine with EU funding and the participation of European companies to save on transport costs. This opinion was expressed by the head of the EU diplomatic service, Josep Borrell, upon his arrival at the EU-Ukraine defense industry forum.
„If possible, weapons should be delivered to Ukraine with the support of European companies, this will save transport costs and produce weapons where they are needed,” Borel said. - We need to provide [Ukraine] with means to protect industry and means to expand production. This forum is dedicated to the second task. 140 companies from 25 countries came to this forum, we will discuss who can produce more in Ukraine.“
"This is the third such meeting, the first was held in Ukraine, the second in the USA, the third in Europe. The task is to integrate the Ukrainian industry into the defense ecosystem of the European Union. The task is to strengthen and develop the capabilities of the Ukrainian defense industry, our task is to produce faster and more, Borel said.
He emphasized that Ukraine “produces drones well” and the EU “can learn from“ this, but at the same time the European Union “has production and financial capabilities”, the community is studying how to produce weapons on Ukrainian territory.
In March, the European Commission presented a concept for the development of the EU's defense industry, which aims to sharply increase the production of military products, mainly shells and missiles for use against Russia in Ukraine and to replenish its own stockpiles. One of the sections of this strategy is dedicated to the plans to integrate the Ukrainian military-industrial complex into the European system of military production. According to the European Commission, this process should only start in conflict and then be continued and completed after the end of hostilities.