Leonardo rules out opening plant in Ukraine
The Italian defence giant Leonardo has announced that it does not plan to establish its own manufacturing operations in Ukraine but remains committed to supporting the country’s defence industry through strategic partnerships.
In an interview with Corriere della Sera, Leonardo CEO Roberto Cingolani emphasised the importance of aiding Kyiv, while clarifying the company’s approach to cooperation, Caliber.Az reports.
"One thing is to produce in Ukraine, another is to make a contribution through other forms of cooperation in the field of defence," the manager said.
"We do not foresee opening a plant in Ukraine," he added.
The manager explained that assistance can be provided through signing agreements and creating alliances with other players to channel the necessary products to Ukraine.
As an example, he cited Leonardo’s cooperation with the Turkish UAV manufacturer Baykar and the German company Rheinmetall. The Italian company signed an agreement with the latter to produce high-tech components for tanks. Both the Turkish and German companies partially conduct production in Ukraine.
In addition, together with the state-owned civil aviation service company Enav, Leonardo will help Ukraine restore civil aviation communications. In this regard, an agreement has been reached for the free transfer of five radars for civil aviation.
By Vugar Khalilov