Ukraine
will spend nearly 22% of its GDP on defense spending in 2024. Zelensky will sign into legality 1.7 Trillion UAH, equivalent to nearly $47 Billion usd worth of defense spending in 2024. While many of those dollars will be spent on things such as salaries for the troops, expect at least $20 Billion usd of that money to be spent on weapons production, procurement and technology development.
This is huge news as it represents a near doubling of Ukraine's 2023 spending and signals their desire as a nation to continue fighting and to continue the assured destruction of Russia's modern land army. Combine with foreign funding with USA, the EU and approximately 10 other supporting nations, expect funding for the war to reach $150 Billion usd in 2024, forcing Russia to spend a deeply uncomfortable amount of money to continue their losing effort.
Expect the following new capabilities to come online for Ukraine in 2024, among others.
- F-16 fighters jets, featuring a full suite of modern American weapons, including JASSM cruise missiles, HAARM anti-radiation missiles, AIM-120 AMRAAM air-to-air missiles, JDAM kits for guided bombs, etc.
- Aerovironment Switchblade 600 anti-armor kamikaze drones, a response to Russia's Lancet drones and an upgrade on the more primitive FPV drones that Ukraine has used as anti-armor drones to this point in the war.
- Fully integrated, domestically made artillery shell production line. Throughout 2024 Ukraine will finally be able to make large amounts of its own artillery shells, but for its legacy Soviet systems and its newer Western systems. They production lines have been largely set up in neighboring countries, for continued production safety and ease of logistics in providing the required ammunition to the front.
- Archer (Sweden) and Firtina (Turkey) 155mm artillery systems. Similar to the other Western made artillery systems that have been donated to Ukraine, both self-propelled systems will continue to ensure that Ukraine has the range, accuracy and counter battery fire advantage over the Russians.
- M1A1 MBTs. The first 31 American made Abrams are arriving in Ukraine as we speak. There will be significantly more to follow throughout 2024, as Ukraine will implement them in their armoured units, as a substantial upgrade to the T-64 and T-72 tanks that formed the bulk of their tank fleet throughout 2023.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has signed a decree implementing the decision of the National Security and Defense Council (NSDC) to allocate more than 21% of the gross domestic product for defense. — Ukrinform.
www.ukrinform.net