Defense Minister of Ukraine Rustem Umyerov explained why his first meeting with rear suppliers took place only a year after taking office. According to him, the main work in this direction is carried out by the Ministry of Strategic Industries (Minstrategprom), so he did not consider it necessary to interfere in this process. Umerov told about this in interview for LB.ua.
Commenting on the issue of food in the army, Umyerov recalled cases when suppliers tried to put pressure on him.
“When I was told before making a decision that there is pressure, that different people will come with different “offers”. Well, let them come! I only fear God!”Umerov stressed.
The first meeting of the minister with suppliers took place as part of the presentation of the new portal “MOU Partner” to optimize work with suppliers. Despite the daily cooperation with the Ministry of Strategy and Industry, Umerov stated that he is the architect of the new system, while the ministry plays the role of operator.
“Because I’m the architect of it all, and they’re the operators. But, yeah, I listened to them when they said this is how it should be done here and this is how it should be done here. I shouldn’t have wasted time. Time was important to me.”, he explained.
During the interview, the issue was raised about the problems of purchasing products for the army from catalogs, where certain non-current items, such as basil or sturgeon, are priced low, while prices for popular products are significantly inflated. This allows suppliers to make significant profits on the products they need. When asked whether the catalog system should be abandoned, Umyerov replied that he creates general rules, and then responsible persons assess the risks and effectiveness of their implementation.
“If the team jointly decides that the catalog system should be abandoned, that’s great. The main thing is that the delivery happens on time and with quality. I set the rules of the game, and they work within these frameworks”, – noted the minister.
During the conversation, the minister called Arsen Zhumadilov, the general director of State rear operator, who informed that in 2024 it is planned to introduce a new product quality control system. The main idea is to create centralized warehouses where the quality of goods will be checked before they are sent to military units.
“We have already demonopolized the market. The next step is the introduction of deeper quality control, which will be carried out at the stage of centralized warehouses, and not only in military units, as is the case now.”, – emphasized Zhumadilov.
