NATO-standard BREN 2 assault rifles now assembled in Ukraine

Ukraine has begun assembling NATO-standard assault rifles locally, Ukroboronprom or Ukrainian Defense Industry JSC announced. The licensed assembly of BREN 2 rifles reportedly started last month – in November – at one of the military conglomerate’s facilities, the company reported.

The CZ BREN 2 is already in service with the Ukrainian army, as well as the armed forces of the Czech Republic, Portugal, French National Gendarmerie operational group, Polish border service, and Romanian gendarmerie. The localization of weapons production is gradually making Ukraine less reliant on its allies for arms supplies and more resilient against ongoing Russian aggression.

According to the company’s press release on 13 December, Ukroboronprom’s Director General Oleh Huliak said

“Partnership with Czech colleagues will help improve meeting the needs of Ukraine’s Defense Forces in reliable and modern small arms produced in our country. Additionally, another step has been taken toward integrating our defense-industrial complex into NATO countries’ industrial chains.”

The agreement with Česká zbrojovka, a subsidiary of Colt CZ (Czech Republic), was signed on 16 July 2024 and provides for localization of assembly and subsequent full manufacturing of NATO-standard assault rifles in Ukraine.

Liga reports that Ukrainian Defense Industry state holding and Česká zbrojovka a.s. had previously signed a letter of intent regarding the license transfer for CZ BREN 2 semi-automatic assault rifle production in Ukraine in February 2024.

The project for transferring CZ BREN 2 assault rifle production technology was first presented at the First International Defense Industries Forum (DFNC1) in Kyiv in late September 2023, where it was announced the rifles would be manufactured under the Sich brand, according to Liga.

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