NATO looking at production of Soviet-era weapons used by Ukraine, says Blinken
Antony Blinken (Photo:REUTERS/Stoyan Nenov)
NATO member countries want to invest in the production Soviet-era weapons systems that the Ukrainian army uses in its battles against Russia, U.S. Secretary of State Anthony Blinken told CNN on Nov. 30.
“We’re looking at every option to make sure that, again, (the Ukrainians) get what they need and what can be most effective for them,” Blinken said.
“Some of that does go to Soviet-era systems that they’ve had in their inventory for decades and, for example, making sure that the ammunition is there for those systems,” Blinken added.
“And in some cases, that may require producing things that haven’t been produced for some time.”
U.S. newspaper the New York Times earlier reported that small NATO member states have exhausted their potential to supply arms to Ukraine. According to the publication, NATO countries are discussing investments in old factories in the Czech Republic, Slovakia and Bulgaria to resume production of Soviet-era shells for Ukraine’s Soviet-era artillery arsenal.
NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg previously called on the alliance to increase production of weapons to support Ukraine, as NATO has exhausted most of its stockpiles of weapons and ammunition.
Follow us on Twitter, Facebook and Google News
