Russian Minister of Transportation Igor Levitin (left) and Deputy Prime Minister Sergey Ivanov
Photo: Sergey Kiselev
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Russia Refuses Ukrainian Missile Motor
Russian authorities have refused to purchase Ukrainian motors for cruise missiles. That decision was announced by Evgeny Kablov, general director of the Aviation Materials Scientific Research Institute, Reuters reports. His announcement coincides with NATO General Secretary Jaap de Hoop Scheffer’s visit to Ukraine. According to Kablov, whose institute specializes in designing alloys for use in air and space engines, specific goals were set by Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin for reducing the dependence of Russian defense on Ukrainian producers. Putin mentioned motors for Kh-55 and Kh-59 cruise missiles and Kh-35 anti-ship missiles in particular.
Moscow now buys missile motors from the Motor Sich plant in Zaporozhye. That plant is the largest manufacturer of propulsion units for air and naval equipment in the CIS. Two days before Kablov’s announcement, Russian Deputy Prime Minister Sergey Ivanov spoke of the need to break ties between the Russian and Ukrainian defense industries in case Ukraine joined NATO.
www.kommersant.com
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