Swedish defense company Saab AB has agreed to jointly produce air defense systems in Ukraine, the Ukrainian Defense Ministry press service announced on 22 October.
Saab has joined the Build in Ukraine initiative—a program aimed at attracting foreign defense companies to establish production facilities directly in Ukraine.
The Swedish firm employs 25,000 people and designs, manufactures, and maintains advanced systems in aeronautics, weaponry, command and control, sensors, and underwater systems. While headquartered in Sweden, the company operates globally and forms part of the defense capabilities of several countries.
No previous announcements had been made about Saab manufacturing air defense systems in Ukraine, though in March 2025 the company signed a memorandum of understanding with Ukrainian defense company Radionix on strategic cooperation in sensors and defense electronics.
As of October 2025, over 25 foreign defense companies are at various stages of production localization in Ukraine. Major arms market players include British BAE Systems, which has already established joint production of L119 howitzers, German Rheinmetall, which is creating repair and production facilities for armored vehicles, and American Northrop Grumman, which has agreed to jointly produce ammunition.
In 2026, Ukraine plans to spend a record 955 billion hryvnias ($22.86 bn) on weapons procurement and production. This represents one-third of all defense funds allocated in the draft state budget.
