British Foreign Secretary calls for increased weapons production to help Ukraine win

British Foreign Secretary David Cameron has called on Western allies to collectively increase arms production to help Ukraine win the defense war against Russia.

NATO can outlast Russia in Ukraine, David Cameron told NATO allies, saying its combined economic power was 30 times greater than Moscow’s.

Addressing his first NATO meeting as Foreign Secretary, Lord Cameron called on member states to leverage their collective advantage to deliver Ukraine enough weapons to defeat Putin’s invading troops. His statement at a NATO meeting in Brussels was cited by The Telegraph.

Cameron noted that NATO is able to stay in support of Ukraine longer than Russia hopes. The British Foreign Secretary called on NATO member states to use their collective strength to provide Ukraine with sufficient weapon supplies.

Read also: Why Ukraine needs more air defense systems – Air Force spokesman explains

David Cameron said that Allies should seek to sign more multi-year agreements with different countries to persuade arms manufacturers to increase production to meet Ukraine’s needs for at least the next two years.

“Two weeks ago, I was in Ukraine and I said that we must do everything we can to help Ukrainians repel this terrible aggression of Putin. I will seek consensus on this position here in NATO,” the minister said before the meeting.

During his visit to Kyiv in mid-November, David Cameron promised Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy that Great Britain will back Ukraine for “as long as it takes”. Newly-appointed Foreign Minister, former Prime Minister, promised to keep UK diplomatic, economic and military support for Ukraine.

Some Western allies have started increasing military aid to Ukraine. In 2024, Germany will double its military aid to Ukraine: now, the total amount of assistance will be 8 billion euros, according to local media.

Read also: Will EU states approve €20 military aid plan for Ukraine?

After the NATO meeting, Ukraine’s Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba said that he had received confirmation from his NATO counterparts that they were ready to unite their defense industries, which also includes the integration of the Ukrainian defense industry.

However, the main achievement, Mr Kuleba said, was an agreement “not put on paper, but spoken very clearly” on a deep reform of the Western defense industry.

“No country alone is able to satisfy the need of Ukraine or even its own state for weapons and ammunition. To solve this problem, NATO and EU countries need to start talking about their joint defense industry as a single integrated complex,” the Ukrainian minister said.

The implementation of this reform, he added, “will integrate the Ukrainian defense industry into the NATO complex” and will also help improve the supply of the Armed Forces.

British weapons manufacturer BAE Systems and 20 French defense companies have already opened operations in Ukraine with a target to eventually start production in the country.

Read also: French company signs a deal to supply Ukraine with weapons worth €36 million

The US Secretary of State, Antony Blinken, also tackled claims that the American military support for Ukraine could soon be reduced as hardline Republicans in Congress continue to block a $60 billion aid package for Ukraine.

Earlier, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg announced that the F-16 fighter jets, that the Ukrainian pilots are training to fly on, will boost Ukraine’s air defense and enhance their ability to inflict greater losses on the Russian invading troops. 

Read also: European Commissioner estimated when EU will deliver 1 million shells to Ukraine