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Ukraine Signs Deal With KNDS Belgium to Boost Medium-Caliber Ammunition Production

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Lucile Brizard
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Ukraine Signs Deal With KNDS Belgium to Boost Medium-Caliber Ammunition Production
A Ukrainian soldier squats beside 155mm shells for a 2S22 Bohdana self-propelled howitzer as part of an artillery crew from the Task Force Police Battalion in Zaporizhzhia region. (Source: Getty Images)

Ukroboronprom, the Ukrainian Defense Industry Joint Stock Company, signed a memorandum of cooperation with KNDS Belgium SA to facilitate joint procurement of medium-caliber ammunition.

The new partnership announced on May 20 aims to enhance Ukraine’s capabilities in producing ammunition used for automatic guns, capable of engaging personnel, light armored vehicles, and low-flying air targets.

Oleh Hulyak, General Director of Ukroboronprom, emphasized that the agreement would contribute to expanding Ukraine’s international partnerships and further integrating its defense industry into NATO-aligned global arms markets.

“We are gradually expanding the geography of our international partnerships, looking for and finding new areas of interaction. This benefits the Ukrainian Defense Forces and our defense-industrial complex,” Hulyak stated.

KNDS Belgium, known for designing and manufacturing a wide range of ammunition, is a key supplier to NATO, the Belgian army, and numerous other countries. This collaboration comes as part of Ukraine’s broader strategy to modernize its defense capabilities through international cooperation.

Recently, Ukroboronprom also signed a memorandum with the Spanish company Escribano Mechanical & Engineering, which specializes in the production of advanced combat modules. The partnership includes the maintenance and repair of Spanish-made combat modules and the joint development and licensed production of new weapons at Ukrainian enterprises.

In addition to these agreements, Ukroboronprom has partnered with Rheinmetall, a German defense manufacturer, with plans to establish production facilities in Ukraine for the manufacture of artillery ammunition.

In related news, North Korea tested a newly developed air-to-air missile, reportedly a reverse-engineered version of the US AIM-120 or the Chinese PL-12.

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