Ukraine will boost local military production with KNDS expanding
A branch of the French-German arms manufacturer KNDS, which produces Caesar self-propelled guns, will be established in Ukraine. On Friday, in the presence of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, a letter of intent was signed on this matter.
On June 7, the French-German conglomerate KNDS and the Ukrainian company ENMEK signed two letters of intent regarding creating the conglomerate's branch in Ukraine. The agreement on this matter was signed following Zelensky's talks at the French Ministry of Defense with the head of the department, Sébastien Lecornu, and KNDS's CEO, Philippe Petitcolin.
One of the letters of intent concerns the creation of a service center for Caesar's self-propelled guns in Ukraine, and the other outlines the 3D printing of spare parts for them.
An agreement was also formalized to transfer licensed production of 155-millimetre projectiles to Ukraine.
Artillery systems, tanks, and self-propelled guns
The French and German defence ministers, Sébastien Lecornu and Boris Pistorius, announced at the end of March this year that they planned to establish a KNDS branch in Ukraine. At that time, it was noted that the new branch in Ukraine would produce spare parts and train local staff.
KNDS is one of the leading European manufacturers of weapons for land forces. It is a joint venture of the French manufacturer Nexter and the German Krauss-Maffei Wegmann. KNDS produces artillery systems, combat tanks, and Caesar self-propelled artillery systems used by the Ukrainian Armed Forces.
