Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky will directly appeal to US defense contractors for more weapons for his country’s defense against Russia when he headlines the annual Future Force Capabilities Conference and Exhibition hosted by the National Defense Industrial Association (NDIA) in Austin, Texas later this month.
According to the program for the event available on the NDIA’s website Zelenskiy is scheduled to address US arms makers and military leaders on September 21 in his first-ever speech to the US defense industry.
Ukraine’s minister of defense Oleksii Reznikov is also scheduled to speak and appeal for support for Ukraine’s fight against Russian invasion during the Future Force Capabilities conference.
Both officials will address events of NDIA, which has defense industry giants like Raytheon Technologies, Lockheed Martin, and General Dynamics among its members, via video link, media outlets noted, at a time when Kyiv looks to fend off Russia’s invasion as it drags through its sixth month.
Raytheon and Lockheed Martin jointly produce Javelin antitank weapons that Ukraine has been using.
Biden administration unveiled on Thursday a $675 million weapons package to Ukraine, including, among other equipment, additional HIMARs, additional high-speed anti-radiation missiles, and more than 5,000 anti-armor systems.
Mykhailo Podolyak, an adviser to Ukraine’s president Zelenskiy, said on Friday that Kyiv would like to receive an additional 50 to 80 multiple-launch rocket systems (MLRS) from foreign partners.
Since the beginning of the Biden administration, Washington has committed $15.2 billion in security assistance to Ukraine, including $14.5 billion since Feb. 24 when Russia invaded Ukraine.
Back in April, a meeting at the Pentagon was convened to discuss how the US could speed up arms production to help Ukraine fend off Moscow’s war. The meeting was attended by eight defense contractors, including Raytheon, Lockheed and General Dynamics.
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