Page 33 - UKRRptFeb24

Ukraine is betting on joint weapons production in its territory, and the EU promises to produce 1.3 million shells by the end of the year. Ukraine is interested in creating joint production facilities with Western defence companies and its defence industry, said Deputy Minister of defence of Ukraine Ivan Havryliuk. "Now our private and state companies can produce more weapons than the state can buy from them. So, we are trying to convey to our partners that it is worth increasing the financing of the Ukrainian defence industry so that we can buy weapons from our own companies," said Gavrilyuk. After all, this saves money on logistics, and the production process in Ukraine is much cheaper. In addition, these collaborations would often not require the creation of enterprises from scratch but rather the modernization of existing facilities, after which these plants could produce, for example, more armored vehicles. Meanwhile, European Commissioner for Internal Market of the EU Thierry Breton said that the EU will be able to produce 1.3-1.4 million shells by the end of the year to provide military aid to Ukraine and replenish its stocks.
Germany to transfer military helicopters to Ukraine for the first time. Germany will transfer decommissioned Sea King MK41 multi-purpose military helicopters to Ukraine, German defence Minister Boris Pistorius announced on Jan. 23. This would be Germany's first provision of military helicopters to Ukraine.
2.3 Polls & Sociology
Ukraine is facing an unprecedented demographic crisis that will take Emerging Europe population levels back to the early 20th century as it records the world’s lowest total fertility rate of 0.7 children per woman of childbearing age, according to government-funded think tank reports The Times.
6/10 Ukrainian refugees hope to return, study says. More than half of Ukrainians surveyed said they plan to return to Ukraine in the future, a 2023 study by Vox Ukraine released Jan. 16 says.
Ukraine hopes new EU migration rules will bring its people back home. Ukraine and the EU are negotiating to ensure that future EU migration rules help return Ukrainians home next year and support the country’s economy. EU migration ministers were supposed to discuss a new social protection system for four million Ukrainians currently in European countries. If the bloc decides to allow Ukrainian refugees to stay while the war continues, they could instruct the European Commission to create a new system. The current directive on temporary protection for Ukrainians has already been extended twice. Ukrainian authorities want the bloc's future migration rules to encourage the return of more Ukrainian citizens to their homes, which would strengthen the economy. The Politico’s anonymous diplomatic sources say that Kyiv did not send an official request to the EU to facilitate the return of refugees, but rather is trying to find a negotiated solution.
Ireland is cutting payments to new refugees from Ukraine, Scotland is cancelling housing benefits, but Germany has allocated €50M for internally displaced people. The Irish government plans to reduce aid to newly arrived Ukrainian refugees to €38.8 per week compared to the current €232 per week. The change will not affect about 103,000 Ukrainians who are already in Ireland. New Ukrainian refugees are also provided with training and support to help them find work. New Ukrainian refugees will also be given 90 days of free public housing, after which they will be responsible for finding housing themselves. Meanwhile, the Scottish government, which provided £10m last
33 UKRAINE Country Report February 2024 www.intellinews.com