Ukraine to build a new ammunition factory
President Petro Poroshenko has proposed the construction of an ammunition factory in Ukraine. To do so, there will need to be 1.4 billion hryvnia ($53.8 million) allocated for the project, as he explained during a meeting of the National Security and Defense Council, according to the Presidential website.
According to the President, a significant part of the funds from the budget surplus will be spent on strengthening the defense and security sector.
"I made a proposal to build an ammunition plant. The introduction of new technologies in full compliance with NATO standards will ensure the compatibility of ammunition calibers," the President said.
"This will make it possible not only to store ammunition, but to ensure the manufacture of ammunition from domestic raw materials. We will have to restore the capacities that were in Ukraine before the occupation of the Russian Federation, I put this position forward as one of our main priorities," Poroshenko stressed.
In addition, 1.6 billion hryvnia ($61.5 million) will be spent on purchasing the latest weapons and military equipment.
Earlier, the Deputy General Director of the state business Ukroboronprom, Volodymyr Korobov, said that they are ready to start large-scale ammunition production within 18 months of receiving funding. This plant will be able to produce ammunition of both NATO caliber and post-Soviet ones.
At the same time, the chairman of the Committee for National Security and Defense, Serghiy Pashinsky, stated that the Armed Forces of Ukraine will not be ordering cartridges in the coming years, so it makes no sense to build a cartridge plant.
In Ukraine, there was previously a cartridge factory in Luhansk that produced ammunition for small arms, however, it is currently located in the territory temporarily uncontrolled by the Ukrainian government.