Senior U.K. defense industry officials and their counterparts in Kyiv are discussing the possible manufacture of British weaponry and military vehicles in Ukraine, The Telegraph reported on Saturday.
British executives have traveled there with a view to setting up joint ventures that would manufacture arms and vehicles locally under license.
Other European defense companies are also in talks with Ukraine, with British companies keen to avoid being beaten to the punch by French and German rivals. A race is on to put the United Kingdom “at the front of the queue,” one executive told The Telegraph.
The news comes after U.K. Prime Minister Rishi Sunak opened the door to Britain sending fighter jets to Ukraine following a plea from Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky during his trip to Britain last week.
According to Ed Arnold, a research fellow at the Royal United Services Institute think tank, a deal on military equipment would “point to future long-term cooperation, deepening ties between Britain and Ukraine to a level they haven’t been yet.” He said a deal of this kind would bring Ukraine “closer towards NATO and European security structures.”
Francis Tusa, an independent defense expert, says deals to make Western armor would likely be seen as antagonistic by Moscow, but NATO allies are unlikely to be intimidated by these threats in the wake of ever more complex arms donations.
“At this stage, anything the West does, the Russians will say that’s a provocation,” he said, adding that the West was likely to take the stance: “Well, tough.”
