President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has announced the key priorities for the upcoming meeting of the Contact Group on Defence of Ukraine in the Ramstein format. The focus will be on additional Patriot air defence systems, new defence packages and a strategically important issue: the establishment of joint arms production plants in Ukraine with partners.
The Head of State said this during a conversation with journalists after talks with Belgian Prime Minister Bart de Weever, TimeUkraine Israel reports.
“We will discuss pressing issues – the Patriot issue, air defence, additional defence packages, as well as the issue of uniting states that will be ready to open factories or production lines for certain weapons in Ukraine,” Zelenskyy said.
Ukraine wants more – and its own
Against the backdrop of Russia’s growing missile terror, Ukraine insists on building up its own air defence capabilities, and Patriot systems have become one of the top priorities for the Ukrainian side.
At the same time, Kyiv relies not only on arms supplies, but also on localisation of production, inviting partners to invest in the joint development of ammunition, equipment and missile systems in Ukraine.
“We are talking about the strategic security of Europe. The more production there is here, the less dependence on supplies and logistics,” the President’s Office said earlier.
New format of cooperation
It is expected that at the next meeting of the Ramstein Group, a model of an intergovernmental association of partners ready to cooperate in the format of defence and industrial alliances with Ukraine will be presented. This is a potentially new stage in the format of assistance: from “giving” to “doing together”.
