On June 18th, the Danish government announced the XIX aid package for Ukraine. DKK 1.2 billion ($170 million) has been reserved for the needs of the Ukrainian defence industry. 

"With the latest aid package, we are providing as much support as possible to meet Ukraine's needs on the battlefield here and now. But we are also committed to supporting Ukraine for the next 10 years. That is why we have created a Danish model of assistance through support for the Ukrainian defence industry, which will allow us to increase Ukrainian military equipment production in a short and long term," said Danish Defence Minister Troels Lund Poulsen.

Ukraine and Denmark agreed on a mechanism that outlines the procedure for the implementation of these funds on June 13th by signing a memorandum. This mechanism provides for the possibility of financing both under contracts already concluded by the Defence Procurement Agency of the Ministry of Defence and under new state contracts with Ukrainian producers. 

"The new, nineteenth aid package from Denmark makes it possible to use $170 million in such a way that the needs of the Ukrainian army can be met rapidly. The first procurement is expected to start this summer. I am grateful to Denmark for such a strong support. I am grateful for the courage to be the first, and for the resilience in continuing support," said Alexander Kamyshin, Minister of Strategic Industries of Ukraine.

"With this initiative, we are meeting Ukraine's strong desire and strengthening both Ukrainian and European security. Therefore, from the Danish side, we will continue to enhance our opportunities to support the Ukrainian defence industry. And we are also pleased with the attention this initiative has received in the EU and other countries," said Danish Foreign Minister Lars Løkke Rasmussen.

As a reminder, Denmark became the first country to allocate funds for the purchase of Ukrainian weapons for the Ukrainian army. On  April 16th, the Danish government announced the allocation of $28.5 million for this purpose.

This is a donation as part of the ZBROYARI: Manufacturing Freedom, a global fundraising campaign. Its goal is to raise $10 billion for the production of Ukrainian weapons in 2024. As part of the project, Ukraine has already received four donors: in addition to two aid packages from Denmark, Canada and the Netherlands have allocated funds.

We expect similar decisions from other partners. For example, U.S. Secretary of State Anthony Blinken said that the United States would provide Ukraine with a $2 billion aid package. These funds should be used, among other things, for investments in Ukraine's defence industry.

EU High Representative Josep Borrell at the Defence Industry Forum DFNC1: US Edition, held in Brussels, called on EU countries to purchase weapons for Ukraine from Ukrainian defence companies in order to transfer them to the Security and Defence Forces as soon as possible.