Free sale of weapons to other countries impossible during active phase of war — Budanov

The Head of the Office of the President of Ukraine Kyrylo Bohdanov stated this on Telegram, Ukrinform reports.

"Ukraine's defense-industrial complex is now at a point where our experience and technologies have become a global brand. But this status will not last forever. We have a unique window of opportunity to secure our niche in the global market," he said during the Defense Tech Export Forum.

He emphasized that free arms sales are impossible during the hot phase of the war.

"I believe we can freely sell only what we have in significant surplus, such as naval drones. We can also export weapons that are hardly used in our war anymore but are still in demand in countries in Asia or Africa. These include certain long-range UAVs or early FPV drone models," he noted.

Budanov stressed the importance of preventing uncontrolled technology leakage.

"We have no right to allow unique Ukrainian developments to fall into enemy hands through the sale of finished products or the creation of dubious 'subsidiary companies'," he said. According to him, the future of Ukraine's defense industry lies in technological superiority.

He also urged manufacturers to focus on integrating artificial intelligence.

"The implementation of AI and the development of our own control systems is the only way to maintain leadership in unmanned technologies," he added.

As reported, President Volodymyr Zelensky said that Ukraine currently has 200 strong defense companies, 30 of which are among the world's top players.