Ukraine’s defense industry operating at only 60% capacity – President

This was stated by President Volodymyr Zelensky during a conversation with journalists, in response to a question about whether Ukraine has sufficient military aid, a Ukrinform correspondent reports.

“We don’t have enough, but I wouldn’t say we have a huge artillery deficit. Yes, there is a shortage, but we’re allocating resources very effectively. We’ve started to produce quite well on our own. The Russians are ‘climbing the walls,’ so to speak, which is why they’re targeting our factories – and not without reason. I believe we’re systematically working to reduce the artillery shortage. That’s a critical track for us,” Zelensky said.

The President emphasized that Ukraine’s defense-industrial complex is currently operating at just 60% capacity.

“We must admit that our domestic defense sector is currently operating at only 60% of its capacity. The remaining 40% is lacking funding. That doesn’t mean we were ever at 100%. We used to be at 10%. Today we’ve expanded significantly. It would greatly help our defense capabilities if we could secure funding for 100% of our production capacity,” he added.

Zelensky stressed that European partners could increase financial support.

“It’s a different story with drones, where we could receive even more help. Europeans can directly fund our private sector. That would be very helpful… 2024 was a tough year, but drones really helped. Domestically produced drones made for the shortage of artillery shells. We had large-scale production. I said we’d produce 1-1,5 million drones, and we ended up producing several million. We have striking results – twice what we promised. Most importantly, they helped hold back the enemy. Well done, guys,” Zelensky stated.

As previously reported by Ukrinform, Ukraine is planning to significantly increase production of drones and ground-based robotic systems.