Deputy commander of Azov 1st Corps: we will keep losing as long as military production is seen only as business
Deputy commander of the National Guard’s Azov 1st Corps, Colonel Mykyta "Raz Dva" Nadtochiy, called on manufacturers not to treat weapons production purely as a business but to work first and foremost toward a common goal with the military.
He made the statement at the 18th annual Kyiv Security Forum on the theme "Darkness or Dawn: Is There Light Ahead?"
"Regarding the moment of interaction between the military and various companies engaged in development - both our Ukrainian ones and those of partner countries - I would like to draw attention to one important detail. I will start with our manufacturers. As long as we treat this as a business, we will keep losing," Nadtochiy said.
He stressed the importance of manufacturers, after receiving feedback from the military on their products, "refining and optimizing everything as quickly as possible so it immediately flies off to destroy the enemy."
"That is, when the entire nation, all of Ukraine, understands that there is no business right now, no moment for making money - when everyone understands that our primary task is to deal with the objective our adversary has set for us - only then will we actually accomplish it," the military officer said.
He noted, however, that many manufacturers have already built a model of cooperation with the military where "they do not talk about money first - they are interested in destroying the enemy."
"And when we reach this symbiosis of ‘military and manufacturers,’ then there will be happiness and joy," Nadtochiy said.
He also separately advised foreign partners to take not only Ukraine’s military experience but also to learn from mistakes in the civilian sector.
"We - first as a brigade, then as a corps - encountered people who simply wanted to profit. They tried to push products onto us that cost quite a lot of money, selling them to us as a flashy picture, as a working element. But then, when we ran tests, we understood that all of this could be done more cheaply and would be far more effective," Nadtochiy said.
As a result, he explained, the military came to the necessity of their own R&D that constantly tests any drones coming in from many manufacturers.
The Kyiv Security Forum (KSF) is an annual international event founded in 2007 at the initiative of Arseniy Yatseniuk’s Open Ukraine foundation. This year it is taking place on April 23-24.
