Lower thirds:

00:02 Report by Max Zander
03:02 Vladyslav Belbas | CEO, Ukrainian Armor
03:33 Vladyslav Belbas | CEO, Ukrainian Armor

Script:

((chaklun factory))

Few places showcase how the war has turbocharged Ukrainian ingenuity like defence startups. 

He used to be a lawyer who flew remote-controlled model planes as a hobby. Now his company develops and produces drones to fight Russia. 

((boss walks into the shop and talks/shows us))
+++SOT UKR 00:16-00:24 (starts in OFF)
“Currently, we are manufacturing the "Chaklun" drones—both reconnaissance and the "Chaklun-K" kamikaze models. “

00:24
Their drone - chaklun can fly without a radio connection - on a preprogrammed course - and records onto a removable hard drive - almost invisible to the enemy. 

((archive footage, have asked for it))

The platform also comes in variants designed to intercept Russian drones as well as hit ground targets - at a price of roughly 8000 Euros per unit. 

+++SOT 00:48-01:05
This section handles assembly and quality control. For example, this technician is testing and adjusting the settings of a drone. The finished products are then delivered to specific end-users, such as military units or specific branches of the Armed Forces.

01:06
He says the firm employed just five people in 2022 when Russia launched its full-scale invasion. Now there are 170 people working here. Last year they produced nearly1200 drones.. 

((deep strike drone in another room))

These are deep-strike UAVs - a new product for the company. 
 
The innovation is clear, and demand is growing. But meeting that demand is hard. 
+++SOT 01:30-01:58
Many skilled workers were mobilized, so we’ve had to train new employees. Additionally, sourcing high-quality components, especially engines and regulators from abroad, presents challenges. However, Ukrainian companies are increasingly producing components domestically, reducing our reliance on imports.

((explainer part with Zelenskyy and foreign leaders, archive material Zelenskyy watching F16s fly by, artillery units firing munition with american flag on it, Danes, Ukrainian howitzers ))

02:00
That’s what Ukraine's president has called for - he wants the country’s defence industry to play a bigger role in supplying the troops - and for allies to invest, to make it possible.

This would make Ukraine less dependent on increasingly unpredictable partners like the U.S..

Denmark, last year became the first country to send Ukraine money rather than weapons. It financed the production of 18 self propelled Bohdana Howitzers. Other countries are now following that model.

((UKR Armour, production footage archive))

Just a few years ago the Ukrainian defence industry was in a bad shape. Now - despite or because of the war - Ukraine is on its way to becoming a leader in Europe. 

((conference room, max and CEO, models and posters of their weapons))

02:43
UkrArmour has become the largest arms producer in Ukraine.Their portfolio includes armoured vehicles, missiles, mortars and of course - drones. 

And they could expand if the Ministry of Defence had the money to increase their orders, CEO Vladyslav Belbas tells us.

03:00
+++SOT Vladyslav Belbas, CEO, Ukranian Armor  ((english)) 10.26
Our demand is limited. I mean, demand is what Mod procurement is. And other authorities also, uh, is limited by their financial capacities. It's not limited. But what they need on the battlefield, they need much more than they procure. 

03:15
 But budgets are tight, and orders only cover the coming three months. 

The Russians on the other hand are seemingly winning the arms production race - despite Ukraine’s huge upscaling. 

03:26 (starts in off)
+++SOT Vladyslav Belbas, CEO, Ukranian Armor  ((english)) 
Russia is producing much greater figures in, uh, uh, weapons and equipments, military equipments, then a Western world and is doing it lower cost so they can utilize the same budgets for much bigger quantities of ammunition, weapons, etc.. Uh, so we see that Western world is still is going to increase. It's still progressing very slowly. They have they have progress. They have like ten, ten, 20, 30%. And in Ukraine we have doubled, tripled every year the production capacities with a relatively low expenditures.

04:02
Ukraine’s ingenuity could solve some of its problems - if it can scale up production. That could be helped by foreign investments, enabling homegrown industry to play a greater part in defending the country.

+++END+++