Building of Ukrainian corvette is frozen – Kinakh

02.09.2010 Ukraine may lose its shipbuilding industry, reports Rosbalt referring to MP Anatoly Kinakh, the head of presidential commission on military industry reform.

"Unfortunately, today defense budget makes only 0.9% of GDP. That's not a budget of development but a budget of destruction… Implementation of strategic defense projects has been suspended. The project of multifunction missile system Sapsan which can be easily realized by domestic defense industry has been frozen. According to Nikolayev city administration, building of corvette at Chernomorsky Shipyard has been also suspended. That is the matter of Ukraine's national security. This project involves several foreign defense companies with gross share of 38% and may have a negative impact on Ukraine's image. We may loose our shipbuilding industry", he said.

In particular, Mr. Kinakh said that the session of Ukraine's National Security Council coming in Sept would discuss the issues of defense industry. The commission will propose to increase Ukrainian defense budget up to 1.5% of GDP.

We recall that MP Anatoly Kinakh previously said that almost all Ukrainian governmental defense programs had been frustrated during the last two years.