Defense industry of Ukraine

Soviet R-9 Desna ICBM and T-34 tank on display at the Central Armed Forces Museum (Russia), both where designed and manufactured in current Ukraine

Ukraine's defense industry was a major part of the Soviet defense industry, responsible for 17% of Soviet defense production and 25% of its scientific research.[6] Some Soviet ICBMs were actually built at the Yuzhmash plant in the Ukrainian city of Dnipro.[7] Russia's only aircraft carrier was also built in the Ukrainian SSR, as well as a number of other Russian military ships.

At the time Ukraine declared independence in 1991, the country had 1,840 defense enterprises and research centers that employed close to 2.7 million people.[6] A number of facilities had unique capabilities such as shipbuilding and missile production.[6] But it was not a cohesive defense industry, but rather fragments of the defense industry of the Soviet Union.[6]

From 1992 to 1996 113 Ukrainian enterprises were engaged in dual-use goods, including weapons.[5] The lack of clear legislation resulted in an arms market where everyone earned what and how they could, including in semi-illegal schemes.[5] The state took control of Ukraine's defense industry in October 1996, creating the concern Ukrspetsexport.[5]

From 1992 to 2014 Ukrainian military exports mainly fell into three categories: new or used equipment, joint development, and maintenance of Soviet-made machinery and equipment.[5] The output of Ukrainian defense plants grew 58% in 2009, with largest growth reported by aircraft builders (77%) and ship builders (71%).[8] Until 2011, the first place for Ukraine in terms of profitability was the sale of aircraft and the provision of services for its modernization and repair.[5] In second place was armored vehicles.[5] In 2011 trade in armored vehicles (including the export of the T-84 Oplot to Thailand) replaced the military aviation export as most profitable military exports, and since then third place has traditionally been occupied by trade in air defense equipment.[5] In 2012 (by far Ukraine's most successful year of arms export[5]) Ukraine had the status of world's 4th largest arms exporter.[1] In 2013 Ukraine's defense sector manufactured a total of 11.7 billion Ukrainian hryvnia (₴) worth of goods, ₴10 billion of which were exported.[9] Prior to 2014 a major part of Ukraine's military business was the selling of Soviet-era stockpiles.[5]

Since the 2014 start of the war in Donbas, Ukraine's military industry focused more on its internal arms market and started to export significantly fewer abroad.[2] Before 2014 Ukrainian producers had not received significant revenues from the Armed Forces of Ukraine.[5] In the first 9 months of 2014 Ukraine's defense sector produced a record ₴13 billion worth of goods, the increase was largely due to government orders for the war in Donbas.[9] Meanwhile, the Ukrainian army began to buy weapons, ammunition and equipment abroad en masse.[5] And since every year the percentage of such imports increases.[5] As a result of Ukraine's arms manufacturing refocus on its own military needs, it slipped to the 9th spot among top global arms exporters by 2015.[2]

After 2015 Ukraine's defence industry stabilized, but Ukraine failed to return to its former exports.[5] In 2018 Ukraine occupied the 11th spot among global arms exporters.[3] And in 2019 the 12th spot.[4] According to Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI), Ukraine's share in the world arms market was 2.7% in 2009-2014 and in 2014-2018 1.3%.[5] The structure of exports also changed: the main part was made up of high-tech products such as guided anti-tank missiles.[5] The business of trading in Soviet stocks has come to naught - the warehouses were emptied by the war in Donbas.[5] In 2019 the main importers of Ukrainian weapons were India, Saudi Arabia and Turkey.[5]

One of major part of export was gas turbine engines for ships[10][11] (mainly Indian Navy) and helicopter engines[12][13][14] and aircraft engines for unmanned aerial vehicles like Baykar Bayraktar Akıncı and Baykar Bayraktar Kızılelma.

BM Oplot, produced by the KMDB guided onto a tank transporter

Defense industry of Ukraine is the most advanced branch of the state-controlled sector of Ukraine's economy. Ukraine's defense industry employs more than one million people and produces advanced hardware and continues to design and build new military systems.[6]

Ukraine's defense industry is organized around Ukroboronprom, a state owned conglomerate of over 130 companies. These companies include Soviet era giants such as Ivchenko-Progress aircraft design bureau that was opened in 1945, to newer companies such as RPC Fort which came into existence in the 1990s.

In August 2018 the Groysman government simplified the procedure for granting economic entities the right to export and import military goods and goods that contain data that constitute a state secret.[5] This opened the market for private defense companies, which previously could only work with foreign clients through a state-owned company.[5]

In October 2018, speaking at the Atlantic Council in Washington, US Special Representative for Ukraine Kurt Volker said that the United States had lifted the arms embargo on Ukraine.[24] This gave big boost to the international cooperation and development of private companies.

On 22 July 2020 the new government ministry Ministry of Strategic Industries of Ukraine was established to aid and develop Ukraine's defence industry.[25]

• List of armoured fighting vehicles of Ukraine
• Armed Forces of Ukraine
• List of design bureaus in Ukraine
• List of Ukrainian weaponry makers
• Shipbuilding in Ukraine
• Aircraft industry of Ukraine
• Ukrainian Navy
• Nuclear weapons and Ukraine
• T-84 Oplot