One of the projects provides for financing small and medium-sized companies producing defense products for the Armed Forces of Ukraine.
The Norwegian government has allocated 967 million kroner (about 82.5 million euros) to strengthen its own defense industry complex. The funds are planned to be spent on increasing the capacity for the production of rocket engines, explosives and other technological products that may be useful to the Ukrainian Defense Forces.
The Norwegian Defense Ministry reported this.
According to Norwegian Defense Minister Bjorn Arild Gramm, the country's defense industry produces important materials for Norway, Ukraine and NATO allies. However, the current production capacity is not large enough to cover the needs.
The new defense industry support program provides for the implementation of four projects:
Hexamine is an important ingredient in the production of modern explosives. Norway is one of the few Western countries with the capacity to produce both explosives and their key components. The Ministry of Defense noted that hexamine is a component of most of the ammunition that Ukraine needs to defend itself against Russian aggression, in particular artillery shells, anti-tank missiles and rocket engines.
“The political and security situation means that there is a large and urgent need for defense materials both in Ukraine and among allies and at the national level. The roadmap is a comprehensive plan to increase the production capacity of the Norwegian defense industry. In doing so, we take responsibility for helping to meet Ukrainian, national and allied needs,” the Norwegian Defense Minister said.
According to Gram, several decades of peace in Europe have led to a reduction in demand for weapons and a decrease in the capacity of defense enterprises. But after the Russian invasion of Ukraine began, the situation has changed and “requires us to reverse this trend.”
“Ukraine depends on access to air defense systems, missiles, artillery shells and other defense materials to continue its defense fight. Both industry and the government have done a lot to increase production in Norway, but this is a complex and long-term task for all our allies,” Berne Arild Gramm emphasized.
Recall that Norway is allocating an additional 48 million euros for the purchase of drones and air defense for Ukraine. The weapons will be purchased through the UK-led International Fund for Ukraine.
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