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Natalia Denikeieva at the VivaTech conference in Paris, France, on June 18, 2026.
Business

Ukraine’s defense tech boom needs more than battlefield innovation, deputy minister says

by Jakub Laichter

Ukraine’s defense technology industry has moved fast to meet battlefield demands, but it rests on a fragile foundation as it depends on foreign suppliers for essential components. Natalia Denikeieva, a deputy minister of digital transformation, says producing more of those components at home is a question of survival. "We are not technological and innovative because one day we woke up and decided to be," she told the Kyiv Independent in an interview in central Kyiv. "For us, it’s a matter of s

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Ukraine's defense industry gets a second chance

In 1991, Ukraine inherited the second-largest defense industrial complex of the Soviet Union. It was so big that almost a third of the Soviet space industry sat on Ukrainian soil, and the system employed millions of people. Pivdenmash, a rocket and space technology juggernaut, built the most powerful intercontinental missiles on the planet. Antonov, a world-famous brand, produced the world's largest aircraft. The city of Kharkiv designed tanks, and Mykolaiv launched aircraft-carrying cruisers.

Ukrainian soldier holds a "Marsianin" attack drone in Kharkiv region, Ukraine, on April 7, 2026.

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The Kyiv Independent’s Business Desk covers the biggest news in business, economics, and tech from Ukraine, as well as global developments that shape the economy of the region.

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