NATO chief addresses International Defense Industry Forum in Ukraine

Europe, News October 2, 2023 , by IRIA No Comments

NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg traveled to Kyiv on September 29, 2023, to participate in Ukraine’s first International Defense Industry Forum. He also met with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy to discuss the status of the ongoing war and Ukraine’s counteroffensive operations.

According to an official statement released by NATO, Stoltenberg addressed the International Defense Industry Forum in Kyiv. He paid tribute to the Ukrainian people and armed forces for their courage and resilience against the Russian invasion.

“But courage alone does not stop drones, heroism alone cannot intercept missiles. Ukraine needs capabilities, high quality, high quantity, and quickly,” Stoltenberg said during his speech. He added that “there is no defense without industry.”

Ukraine hosted the international conference for the defense industry as part of a government effort to ramp up weapons production within the country against the backdrop of the Russian invasion. The conference focused on reducing Kyiv’s dependency on foreign arms and weapons deliveries.

Stoltenberg praised the resourcefulness of the Ukrainian defense industry, saying, “From drones to de-mining, Ukraine has innovated at lightning speed.” He added that “the stronger Ukraine is on the battlefield, the stronger their position will be at any negotiating table. So, while it may sound like a paradox, weapons for Ukraine are the way to peace.”

*^{NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg addressing the first meeting of the International Defence Industry Forum in Kyiv, Ukraine, on September 29, 2023. (Image Credit: NATO)}*

The statement highlighted that since the Russian invasion of Ukraine started in 2022, NATO has been working through its Defense Production Action Plan to aggregate demand and increase interoperability.

The NATO Support and Procurement Agency has initiated several major programs, including framework contracts for $2.5 billion worth of key ammunition, as well as $1 billion of firm orders to cover capabilities such as 155-millimeter artillery, anti-tank guided missiles, and main battle tank ammunition.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy also addressed the conference. He said that around 250 defense companies from more than 30 countries had gathered in Kyiv to participate in the conference. Defense ministers and representatives of several countries also attended the event.

Honoured to be back in Kyiv to meet President @ZelenskyyUa. We discussed #Ukraine’s most urgent needs & the next steps in #NATO’s support. The stronger Ukraine becomes, the closer we are to ending Russia’s aggression. pic.twitter.com/6otciNMbJl
— Jens Stoltenberg (@jensstoltenberg) September 28, 2023

Zelenskyy also revealed that during his recent trip to Washington, he agreed with U.S. President Joe Biden on “the establishment of a new industrial ecosystem that will strengthen both Ukraine and all the partners.” Zelenskyy described it as “one of the key outcomes” of his negotiations with Biden in Washington.

NATO chief meets Ukrainian president

During his trip to Kyiv, the NATO Secretary General also met with the Ukrainian President in a bilateral meeting. Stoltenberg and Zelenskyy agreed to make joint efforts to gather more support for Ukraine and to acquire additional air defense systems to protect the country’s power plants and energy infrastructure.

The meeting came only a day after Russia accused Kyiv’s Western allies of helping Ukraine in planning and conducting a missile attack on Russia’s Black Sea Fleet’s headquarters in Crimea.

NATO Secretary General Stoltenberg with Ukraine's Zelenskyy — *^{NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg meets with President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy in Kyiv. (Image Credit: NATO)}*

In a statement released by the Russian Foreign Ministry, spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said the attack on the Black Sea Fleet headquarters in Crimea had been coordinated with the help of U.S. and U.K. security agencies, and that NATO satellites and reconnaissance planes also played a role.