To help Ukraine protect itself and Europe, Western countries and defence companies should boost investments in Ukraine’s defence sector and redouble their efforts to ensure their components don’t end up in Russian weapons systems, Volodymyr Zelenskyy said on Tuesday.
Speaking from the Hague on the eve of a summit of NATO leaders, the Ukrainian president said the war-torn country’s defence sector is able to produce much more than it currently does but is limited by lack of financing.
“Our defence production potential has surpassed $35 billion,” Zelenskyy told the NATO Defence Industry Forum, with a range of over 1,000 types of weapons produced in the country including artillery, armoured vehicles, drones, and missiles.
“But around 40% of this potential lacks proper funding. That’s a problem. For example, we can produce over eight million drones of different types each year but the financing allows for far fewer.”
“We are open to various forms of cooperation in the defence sector including sharing our expertise and achievements with those who help the most (…) Please increase your investments in Ukraine in joint weapons production,” he added.
‘Ukraine is an equal partner’
Leaders from the military alliance will convene on Wednesday for a working session in which they should confirm their commitment to raise NATO’s defence spending target from its current 2% of GDP target to 5%.
The number is one US President Donald Trump has called for after castigating European allies for not spending enough on their own defence and casting doubt over Washington’s long-term commitment to European security.
Zelenskyy, who noted that Russia continues to fund its aggression through revenues it gets from oil exports, said the new figure is “the right level”.
“European countries need to increase defence spending,” he said. “A united Europe can create a defence capability that will destroy Russia’s illusion that war with Europe could bring it anything.”
Allies have dramatically upped their defence spending since Russia launched its full-scale invasion in 2022 – although several NATO members will only meet the 2% target this year – while the EU has also recently tabled a new plan to boost the production and deployment of defence capabilities before 2030 which it estimates at €800 billion.
It includes a €150 billion loan programme to facilitate joint procurement, which is also open to Ukraine.
Zelenskyy welcomed this initiative, adding that “it’s important to keep in mind that Ukraine is an equal partner to this programme, meaning that ensuring security is our common cause”.
‘A crime against peace’
But he also stressed that although Russia is receiving help from Iran, North Korea and some Chinese companies to inflict damage on Ukraine, it’s also still able to get Western-made equipment.
“Please make sure your countries and your companies are not helping Russia or its buddies in any way. This is crucial really and there is no significant Russian weapon today that is produced without components, without equipment or materials from other countries, sadly including some from European (sic) and NATO. This must stop,” Zelenskyy said.
“Every single component or machine tool delivered to Russia’s defence sector helps prolong the war and is a crime against peace,” he added.
The EU has slapped 17 packages of sanctions on Russia for its invasion to deprive it of the means to finance it, but circumvention, especially of components or equipment that have both civilian and military use, has been an issue.
The bloc is currently working on an 18th package to further tighten the screw on Moscow’s energy and financial sectors with leaders set to discuss it at their summit on Thursday, which Zelenskyy will also briefly attend.
The Ukrainian leader’s whirlwind tour of Europe – he was in the UK on Monday – could see him return disappointed.
Ukraine is only briefly mentioned in the joint declaration that NATO leaders are set to agree upon on Wednesday, with no repeat of its “irreversible path” to membership that featured in the 2024 declaration.
In Brussels, Hungary continues to block progress on Ukraine’s accession bid and the opening of the first cluster of negotiations despite the European Commission giving its stamp of approval.
A senior EU official said that the leaders’ conclusions on Ukraine are therefore not expected to be approved unanimously but by 26 member states, which carries less weight given most enlargement and foreign affairs decisions in the EU have to be approved unanimously.
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