Ukrainian Minister of Industries: We Want to Be the 'Arsenal of the Free World'

The new defense industry official of Ukraine states that while striving to increase domestic weapon production, he aims to turn the country into a center for arms manufacturing for the West. Alexander Kamyshin, Ukraine's Minister of Strategic Industries, said that Russia's invasion of his country and the ongoing Israel-Hamas conflict have highlighted the need for countries to invest in their defense systems. Kamyshin told the Associated Press on Friday, November 3, that Ukraine is focused on being the 'arsenal of the free world.' He added that nearly 500 companies in Ukraine's defense industry are working to increase weapon production to counter the Russian military invasion. Among these, there are 70 state-owned factories and over 200 mostly private factories involved in the production of automated systems, as well as more than 200 private companies producing various types of weapons and ammunition. According to Kamyshin, Ukrainian-made weapons are being tested in the battlefield and improving in quality through this process, and they can assist the free world. Alexander Kamyshin was appointed to this position about eight months ago and is now responsible for approximately 300,000 people employed in Ukraine's defense industries. He previously served as the head of Ukraine's national railway and gained fame for his outstanding performance in maintaining trains during the Russian invasion and transporting hundreds of thousands of Ukrainians to safety. Kamyshin has transformed Ukraine's defense industry in a short time, and now the country's military significantly uses domestically produced weapons in its operations. Mortars, artillery ammunition, drones, armored vehicles, and personnel carriers are among the products currently produced in Ukraine. Increasing domestic weapon production has enhanced Ukraine's ability to launch attacks on Russian territory, moving the country out of a defensive phase. Given that many of Ukraine's allies are experiencing shortages in sending weapons to the country, Kyiv is trying to encourage them to engage in joint arms production. Kamyshin stated that over 60 foreign companies have signed agreements to join Ukraine's defense industry alliance, with these companies coming from the USA, UK, France, Germany, Poland, Czech Republic, and Turkey. Ukraine hopes to become a major arms exporter to the free world by continuing this trend. However, according to Kamyshin, this plan will not succeed without the participation of foreign partners. He noted that Ukraine needs to produce more weapons as it faces the 'largest war of generations' due to the devastating Russian invasion.