Ukrainian companies have increased their industrial capacity to produce four million drones a year, Defense Minister Rustem Umerov said at a June 26 press briefing.The statement comes as Ukraine seeks to increase domestic arms production amid uncertainty over further U.S.
support and reduced dependence on supplies from European partners.Ukrainian manufacturers will supply four million drones to the front line this year, while the Ukrainian army has already received up to 1.5 million drones as of the end of June, according to Umerov.About two weeks ago, a decision was made to scale up these operations.
We are already preparing a new large contract to increase the intensity of strikes, Umerov said.A systematic plan for long-range operations was formed last year: tens of thousands of deep-strike drones were contracted, which now regularly target critical objectives deep behind enemy lines.
Deliveries are proceeding according to schedule, and combat missions are carried out daily under an approved plan, Umerov said.The minister said that brigades made many requests for direct funding last year, with a commitment secured for 2025.
The government is currently allocating Hr 2.5 billion ($60 million) per month for direct procurement teams, he added.In the meantime, Umerov said that not all brigades spend money due to a lack of procurement specialists, so the Defense Procurement Agency (DPA) launched the DOT Chain Defense marketplace for Ukrainian soldiersThe teams see a marketplace of drones: each team orders what it needs, and the healthcare organization pays for it.
This way we significantly reduce all the bureaucracy, and the teams get what they need ten times faster, Umerov said.Sources: Kyiv Post; Kyiv Independent