On September 30, the website of the Russian media "Side" weekly reported that Ukrainian President Zelensky posted a video on the "Telegram" social platform on the 29th. Zelensky said that Ukraine plans to export surplus weapons in exchange for The funds will be used to purchase or produce necessary weapons. Zelensky also specifically emphasized in his speech that arms exports Four directions are the United States, Europe, the Middle East and Africa.
What weapons will Ukraine sell?
Three years after the Russia-Ukraine War, Europe provided Ukraine with a large number of weapons. According to statistics, the United States has provided Ukraine with approximately 900 "switchblade" drones, 1800 "Phoenix Ghost" drones, 8500 Javelin missiles, 2500 Trotted missiles, 3350 ERAM long-range missiles, 160 M777 howitzers (with 2 million rounds of 155 mm artillery shells), and 38 Haima rocket launchers.
Germany provided 18 Leopard-2 tanks, 100 Leopard-1A5 tanks. Britain ordered 5,000 LMM anti-drone missiles to Ukraine for £1.6 billion. 30 countries, including Poland, France and others, provided 200 PT-91 tanks, Caesar cannons and so on through the "Volunteer Alliance".
After these weapons entered Ukraine, Ukraine became a landfill of weapons for all nations. Drones, F-16 fighters and "Patriot" air defense missiles, Haimas missiles and other equipment。 However, these equipment are relatively expensive, and the amount of assistance from various countries is limited. Ukraine will not sell these high-value weapons. The weapons that may be sold include the following categories.
The first category is the R-73 air-to-air missile.After the outbreak of the Russian-Ukrainian war, the Ukrainian fighter jets suffered a lot of losses, and the US-Europe-assisted F-16 fighter jets were basically unused, so Ukraine dismantled these air-to-air missiles and converted them into drones or "Blue Bear" air defense system weapons, used to fight Russian helicopters and drones.
The second category is T-80 tanks and aircraft.With the reorganization of five tank brigades into mechanized brigades, some old T-80 tanks in Ukraine's inventory are no longer in use due to maintenance difficulties and the gradual replacement of Western M1A1 tanks. In addition, MiG-29 and Su-27 have also appeared to be surplus, and some fighter jets have been dismantled or converted into drones.
Category III cruise missiles。 The cost of this missile is as low as US $10,000 and uses the V-1 engine technology of World War II. Ukraine has produced more than 3,000 missiles, but due to its poor performance (range 200-650 kilometers, warhead only 19 kilograms), a large inventory has been created.
The fourth category is various types of drones in stock.Ukraine currently consumes only 200 drones and other equipment on the front line per day, with an inventory backlog of more than 4,000, and Ukraine's drone production base in Europe produces a large number of drones every day. Ukraine has to deal with these drone backlogs.
Could U.S. countries buy?
Ukraine wants to sell weapons to foreign countries and has set four different export directions. According to the current situation of Ukraine's weapons inventory, countries such as the United States and Europe naturally despise Ukraine's surplus Soviet-style weapons, but drones with surplus inventories may be repurchased by the United States and European countries for reproduction as new unmanned materials.
Ukraine's surplus R-73 air-to-air missiles may be sold to Middle Eastern countries that still use MiG-29 and Su-27. T-80 tanks will be sold to countries in Africa and the Middle East. Although T-80 tanks are not advanced tanks, they are already a major killer locally. In addition to the Middle East and Africa, Ukraine can also sell T-80s to Cyprus, which is an importer of T-80 tanks, and Ukraine can sell some tanks in Cyprus.
Although the "Trembita" cruise missile has poor performance, it has long-range strike capability. For countries with backward weapons and equipment, such long-range strike weapons are scarce. This kind of missile sold to the Middle East is always much stronger than the homemade rockets made by small countries in the Middle East. Therefore, the "Trembita" cruise missile will most likely be sold to the Middle East and Africa. These countries lack such cheap and practical weapons.
Theoretically, Ukraine’s weapons are sold well in the Middle East and Africa, but the problem is that these countries may be forced under Russian pressure and dare not buy these weapons. This is no longer a question of merchandising, but a question of position.
Will the attitude of the United States and Europe change?
After Ukraine sells weapons to the outside world, the attitude of the United States, Europe and other countries towards Ukraine's military aid will definitely change. The United States and European countries will reduce their aid to excess weapons and choose more powerful and practical weapons to assist Ukraine, such as Patriot air defense missiles, F-16 fighter jets and advanced drones.
The U.S. has already made profits from Ukrainian military aid, and U.S. sources have continued to support more new weapons in Ukraine. U.S. Vice President Wences revealed that the U.S. is planning to support Ukraine with tactical cruise missiles. European countries need to spend money on purchasing these weapons to support Ukraine. This will undoubtedly increase Europe’s economic burden, but Europe seems to have accepted this support model by default.
In summary, the weapons that Ukraine is selling are mainly outdated excess weapons, which Ukraine sells to countries such as the United States in exchange for money, which is beneficial to Ukraine. Weapons exports to Ukraine are not easy.Countries such as the US and Europe may not pay, and countries in the Middle East and Africa may be hindered by the pressure of Russia to not dare to pay.