Thousands of drones for Ukraine stuck in Lithuanian warehouses, media outlet says
Pravda Ukraine
Drones promised to Ukraine by Lithuanian manufacturers, originally slated for delivery by the end of last year, are reportedly still sitting idle in Lithuanian military warehouses.
Source: Lithuanian public broadcaster LRT
Quote from LRT: “Manufacturers say that while drones are gathering dust in Lithuania, Ukraine is suffering heavy losses. Politicians, on the other hand, say that bureaucracy is to blame.”
Details: A company involved in purchasing drones for Ukraine claims that the equipment was delivered to Lithuanian warehouses several months ago.
“We delivered some of the drones in October, some in November, but we have no information yet that the drones have been delivered to Ukraine,” says Tomas Milašauskas, head of RSI Europe, a Lithuanian defence sector company.
The company has not yet been called upon to train Ukrainians in the use of drones. Other companies have also confirmed they have no information indicating the drones have been delivered to Ukraine.
Laurynas Kasčiūnas, former Lithuanian minister of national defence, says the bureaucracy is to blame. He argues that a product has six steps to go through before it reaches its final destination.
“The bureaucracy works as follows: there are warehouses, the Defence Resources Agency has to formally transfer them [the drones] to the army, the government has to make a decision to transfer it to Ukraine, then it needs to be transported to Ukraine… This means we need to focus and take each step as quickly as possible,” Kasčiūnas stressed.
The former defence minister acknowledges that the steps are logical but emphasises that any delay at any stage can cause the entire process to stall. Drone manufacturers, however, insist that the equipment should be delivered to Ukraine without further delay.
“If the drones are not in the hands of the soldiers, then Ukraine will suffer more significant losses than it could have,” Milašauskas said.
Giedrimas Jeglinskas, head of the Parliamentary Committee on National Security and Defence, also draws attention to the technical characteristics of the drones.
“When it comes to drones, which are new technologies produced according to the latest standards, they should be in the hands of users – the Ukrainian military – as soon as possible,” he explains.
Jeglinskas added that this incident should serve as a signal to review the entire system.
Lithuania’s Defence Ministry says the drones purchased from Lithuanian manufacturers will be delivered to Ukraine shortly. The ministry says the supply chain is already being shortened, as evidenced by a government decree passed this week.
“It [the decree] stipulates that if state assets are acquired for the needs of another state using funds allocated by the government, the government should not discuss this issue again… From now on, we will start transferring assets to Ukraine in accordance with these amended procedures,” the ministry said in a statement.
Background:
- In August, five Lithuanian drone manufacturers successfully conducted tests in Ukraine. Almost 5,000 drones worth €5 million were purchased for Ukraine’s Armed Forces.
- In addition, 2,300 combat drones worth €3 million were acquired for the Lithuanian Armed Forces.
- Earlier, Lithuania’s Defence Ministry had announced that all drones would be delivered to Ukraine by the end of 2024.
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