Ukraine State Weapons Producer Head Resigns After Fatal Warehouse Blast
Leadership Changes at Ukroboronprom Following Russian Strike
Resignation of Herman Smetanin
July 14 (Reuters) - The head of Ukraine's state weapons giant Ukroboronprom, Herman Smetanin, said on Tuesday he was stepping down, a week after a Russian strike caused lethal detonations at one of the conglomerate's storage sites.
Smetanin did not give a reason for his decision.
Background of the Warehouse Incident
Details of the Russian Attack
President Volodymyr Zelenskiy has said that Russia struck an ammunition warehouse during its attack on the Kyiv region on July 6, adding that officials at Ukroboronprom, which owned the warehouse, would be held responsible. Two other senior officials at Ukroboronprom were dismissed earlier this month.
Succession and Future Plans
Selection of New CEO
Ukroboronprom, the country's largest state-owned defence conglomerate uniting about 100 weapons producers, said that it has launched a process to select its new CEO.
Appointment of Acting Head
Serhiy Boyev, a former deputy defence minister, was named as acting head.
Impact on Ukraine's Defence Industry
Ukraine's defence industry has been transformed during the more than four years it has been fighting Russia's invasion with production capacity increasing to an estimated $50 billion a year.
(Reporting by Anna Pruchnicka; Editing by Joe Bavier)
