“According to the mass media, drones of Lithuanian manufacturers promised to Ukraine, which were supposed to be delivered by the end of last year, are still in the Lithuanian army warehouses. Source: LRT Verbatim LRT: “Manufacturers say that while drones are gathering dust in Lithuania, Ukraine will suffer heavy losses.”, — write: www.pravda.com.ua
According to the mass media, drones of Lithuanian manufacturers promised to Ukraine, which were supposed to be delivered by the end of last year, are still in the Lithuanian army warehouses.
Source: LRT
Literally LRT: “Manufacturers say that while drones are gathering dust in Lithuania, Ukraine will suffer great losses. Politicians say that bureaucracy is to blame.”
Details: One of the companies from which drones are purchased for Ukraine claims that the equipment was delivered several months ago.
“We delivered part of the drones in October, part in November, but we still have no information that the drones were delivered to Ukraine,” says the head of RSI Europe Tomas Milashauskas.
The company has not yet been called upon to teach Ukrainians how to use drones. Some other companies also confirmed that they do not have any information that the drones were delivered to Ukraine.
Former Minister of National Defense Laurinas Kaschyunas says: bureaucracy is to blame for everything. He claims that in order for the product to reach its final destination, it is necessary to go through six steps.
“The bureaucracy is like this: there are warehouses, the Defense Resources Agency has to formally hand it over to the army, the government has to make a decision on handing it over to Ukraine, then it needs to be transported to Ukraine… This means that you need to focus and take every step as quickly as possible,” Kaschyunas said. .
According to the former minister, the steps are logical, but if there is a delay in any of them, everything gets stuck. Drone manufacturers say that the delivery of equipment to Ukraine must be carried out as soon as possible.
“If the drones are not with the soldiers, then Ukraine will suffer more significant losses than it could have,” Milashauskas believes.
The head of the parliamentary committee on national security and defense, Gedrimas Eglinskas, also draws attention to the technical characteristics of drones.
“When it comes to drones, which are new technologies that are manufactured according to the latest standards, they should be in the hands of the users – the Ukrainian military – as soon as possible,” he explains.
According to Eglinskas, this story should be a signal to review the entire system.
The Ministry of Defense claims that drones purchased from Lithuanian manufacturers will be delivered to Ukraine in the near future. The agency says the chain is already shrinking, thanks to a government order passed this week.
“It provides that if state property is purchased for the needs of another state at the expense of funds allocated by the government, then the government should not discuss this issue again… From now on, we will start transferring property to Ukraine in accordance with these changed procedures,” the ministry said in a statement .
In August, five Lithuanian drone manufacturers successfully conducted tests in Ukraine. Almost 5,000 drones worth 5 million euros were purchased for the Armed Forces of Ukraine.
In addition, 2,300 combat drones worth 3 million euros were purchased for the Lithuanian army.
Earlier, the ministry announced that all drones will be delivered by the end of 2024.