Budanov: Defense buildup, reindustrialization are vital for Ukraine's survival
Ukraine faces the task of making the defense industry the backbone of a new economy, bringing "new jobs, technology, engineering, investment, exports and new industrial weight for the country," President's Office Head Kyrylo Budanov said in congratulating defense industry workers on their professional holiday.
"The war is sustained not only on the frontline, it is sustained by machine tools. Not everyone sees your work, and that is how it should be. But everyone is glad to read about repelled offensives, about the roar far beyond the front line, about lives saved. Over these years, Ukraine's defense industry has done what in peacetime would have been stretched over decades," he said on Telegram on Monday.
He said Ukraine has already passed the stage "when it simply had to hold on."
"Not only the enemy, but the whole world has seen what our defense industry is capable of: MAGURA, Neptune, Vilkha, Liutyi, Leleka, Bohdana and others impress everyone, especially the enemy," Budanov said.
"Now the task is bigger: to make the defense industry the framework of Ukraine's new economy. Localization and a full production cycle of our own weapons mean jobs, technology, engineering, investment, exports and new industrial weight for the country," he said.
"That is why defense industrialization of the economy and reindustrialization are not theory. It is a practical question of survival and strength. At the same time, it is a question of what Ukraine will be like after the war. I thank everyone working for this result," he said.
