Czech billionaire Michal Strnad, the CEO of the Czech industrial-technological holding Czechoslovak Group (CSG), intends to invest hundreds of millions of euros in the construction of a heavy machinery factory in Ukraine, specializing in the production of artillery shells and tank ammunition. This announcement comes from the Bloomberg agency.
According to Strnad, his company is currently in negotiations with “Ukroboronprom”. The billionaire emphasized that if an agreement was reached between the parties, Czech technologies would have already been transferred to Ukraine, leading to a significant increase in the production of tank ammunition and artillery shells.
Strnad highlighted that discussions are underway with Kyiv regarding several joint venture projects. An agreement could be reached as early as this year, although it will take another two to three years before production begins. The CEO of Czechoslovak Group noted that the deals would be similar to Ukraine’s agreements with the German defense industry conglomerate Rheinmetall.
It was previously reported that the administration of US President Joe Biden is considering the idea of allocating $200 million from the Pentagon’s budget to provide assistance to Ukraine.
Earlier reports indicated that Kyiv’s partners have gathered almost all the necessary funds to finance the Czech initiative to procure 800,000 projectiles for the Armed Forces of Ukraine (AFU).