cross-posted from: https://scribe.disroot.org/post/5223408
Mass production of Ukrainian interceptor drones in the United Kingdom is gearing up, as the war-torn country transitions to licensed production of domestically designed weapons in partner countries. Speaking at a press conference on Oct. 20, British Secretary of State for Defense John Healey said the joint manufacturing project, dubbed Octopus, would begin “within weeks.”
The announcement comes a few days after Ukraine’s government-backed defense technology group Brave1 identified a handful of weapon categories deemed fit for export to Western allies. Over the last few months, Kyiv has explored the possibility of easing its arms transfer ban.
In July, leaders launched a new initiative to authorize allied countries, such as members of the Ramstein group of global backers, to produce Ukrainian systems locally. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has warned that this process will be gradual and will only entail a partial and regulated lift of restrictions limited to weapons in surplus.
According to Healey, the Octopus interceptor, a proven system against Shahed-type attack drones, will become the foundation of the so-called European “drone wall” to deter further Russian aerial threats.
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I wonder what their concern is. All of their allies probably have already started developing their military drones anyway, if they didn’t already have them. So it’s not like he’s giving Western countries access to never before seen weapons platforms.
A lot of their systems are just commercially available drones with a grenade attached to them, hardly difficult to reproduce technology.