Financed by aid package?
US arms giant wants to produce ammunition in Ukraine
20.06.2024, 07:51 a.m.
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Ukraine lacks ammunition for the weapons supplied by allies. In the future, some of the ammunition could even be produced in Ukraine – by a US arms giant.
The US defense and aerospace company Northrop Grumman plans to produce ammunition in Ukraine. Ukrainian media citing statements from a high-ranking official and a US government official. It would be the first American ammunition production line to be put into operation in Ukraine.
Dave Bartell, director of international business at Northrop Grumman Defense Systems (NG), speaking at the Eurostatory arms fair in Paris, said Ukraine would pay to set up the assembly line to produce “medium caliber” ammunition. Stanley Brown, a US State Department official who also spoke at the arms fair, confirmed that Washington expects to produce ammunition there in the future. He said a US-funded $2 billion aid program for Ukraine could help with the financing.
NG produces a range of 25mm, 30mm, 40mm and 50mm rounds typically fired from chain guns. NG hopes to expand this production capacity in Ukraine to include tank ammunition and 155mm artillery ammunition, Bartell said.
Currently, the Ukrainian Armed Forces use American-made Bradley infantry fighting vehicles armed with 25mm guns and NG shells. The weapon is popular among the troops due to its reliability, accuracy and powerful warhead, which can sometimes even knock out a Russian tank. The Ukrainian Navy has mounted a small number of tracked guns on patrol boats.
The Ukrainian military also makes extensive use of a Soviet-era 30mm cannon and ammunition, as well as a small number of Swedish-made Stridsfordon-90 infantry fighting vehicles equipped with a 40mm cannon made by Bofors, a long-time competitor of Northrop Grumman. Bartell’s comments did not provide details on which Ukrainian weapons systems – aside from the Bradley gun – the assembly line to be set up in Ukraine could produce ammunition for.
The Ukrainian army has been suffering from a shortage of personnel and ammunition for months. These problems are caused, among other things, by delays in the mobilization of new soldiers and the delivery of weapons by the country’s Western allies.