More than 40 foreign defense companies operate in Ukraine

Ukraine has managed to attract more than 40 foreign defense companies to work in the country. President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyi also said that more than 600 domestic companies operate in the defense sector. These defense companies have managed to provide a total of 300,000 jobs.

"If together with Britain or America we are able to produce thousands of missiles a year, then we need this partnership even in the state part of the defense industry," Zelenskyi noted. Since the beginning of Russia's full-scale invasion, Ukraine has been trying to increase its own weapons production, partly by producing them jointly with partners. In early December last year, Volodymyr Zelenskyi stated that Ukraine does not want to depend on partners only but is interested in cooperation, particularly in arms production.

Later, after a defense conference in the United States, Kyiv announced agreements with two American companies to jointly produce 155 mm ammunition in Ukraine. In July of this year, the German concern Rheinmetall received an order from the Ukrainian government to build an ammunition plant. The order provides for full technical equipment of the plant prior to commissioning.

Construction will be completed within a few years, and ammunition production will begin within 24 months.

Production of 155-mm shells at a Rheinmetall plant. Photo credits: Philipp Schulze

Rheinmetall and its Ukrainian partner will be jointly responsible for the plant's operation.

Also, in August 2025, the Turkish aircraft manufacturer Baykar will complete the construction of a plant in Ukraine. The Turkish company Baykar will invest £100 million in three projects in Ukraine.

Bayraktar TB3 drone being prepared for flight. March 2023.

Photo credits: Selcuk Bayraktar

The plant's facilities will be able to produce about 120 drones a year, but a specific model has not yet been chosen - it could be Bayraktar TB2 or even TB3.