Parliament exempts drones, other equipment from VAT, customs duties

The Ukrainian parliament has adopted two bills abolishing VAT and customs duties on the import of drones, thermal imagers, collimators, night vision devices, and walkie-talkies, Yaroslav Zhelezniak, deputy head of the parliamentary committee on tax and customs policy, reported on Feb. 6.

"All bureaucratic restrictions on the import of these goods important for our defense have been removed. The bills were developed together with volunteer organizations," Zhelezniak wrote.

Ukraine's Armed Forces need "hundreds of thousands" of drones to defend the country against Russian invasion, Defense Minister Oleksii Reznikov said on Feb. 5.

On Jan. 29, Commander of the Joint Forces of Ukraine Serhii Naev said that Ukraine would allocate Hr 20 billion ($500 million) from its defense budget to purchase drones.

The mass use of drones will make it possible to advance more quickly during offensive actions, significantly reduce Russia's combat potential, and stop the enemy from conducting its offensives, according to Naev.