In Ukraine, the production of cruise missiles has increased eightfold: Ministry of Strategic Industries
In 2024, Ukraine made a breakthrough in the production of high-precision weapons. By in words Minister of Strategic Industries Herman Smetanin, the volume of production of cruise missiles increased eight times compared to the previous year, 2023. At the same time, the production of long-range drones has more than doubled, and 22 times — compared to 2022, when the industry was just beginning to adapt to the scale of full-scale war. These figures were announced by the minister during a briefing on the occasion of the Armourer’s Day.
As Smetanin explained, if earlier the Ukrainian defense industry focused almost exclusively on the production of the Neptune cruise missile, today the range of developments has significantly expanded. We are talking about samples of different ranges, purposes and guidance methods – thanks to this, such a large-scale increase in the pace of production became possible. In addition to the missiles themselves, 324 new types of weapons and military equipment were created in 2024, which testifies to the technological dynamics of Ukrainian enterprises of the defense complex.
The total value of military products manufactured in Ukraine during 2024 is about 9 billion US dollars. The forecast for 2025 is even more ambitious: according to the Ministry of Strategic Industries, by the end of the current year, Ukraine can increase the production of military equipment to the level of $35 billion. This includes missiles, unmanned aerial vehicles, armored vehicles, artillery systems, means of electronic warfare and other types of weapons.
We will remind, the adviser to the President of Ukraine on strategic development, Oleksandr Kamyshin, also emphasized that the domestic defense industry is gradually taking on more and more of the burden of providing the Armed Forces of Ukraine. In his opinion, Ukrainian enterprises are already able to cover almost the full spectrum of the needs of the army, which until recently was impossible without the help of foreign partners.
Thus, the year 2024 became a turning point in the process of transforming Ukraine from an aid-recipient country into a state that systematically builds up its own defense potential and forms an independent military-industrial capacity. This not only meets the challenges of war, but also creates the basis for the long-term strengthening of national security.
