NATO, Ukraine start major defense procurement review

That's according to a statement posted on the military alliance's website, Ukrinform reports.

"A conference marking a new phase in NATO's partnership with Ukraine will take place in Luxembourg this week. Delegates from NATO and Ukraine will meet to discuss modernizing Ukraine's defense procurement processes to make them faster, more sustainable and more transparent. Stacy Cummings, General Manager of the NATO Support and Procurement Agency, will open conference proceedings and speakers include Ukraine's Deputy Minister of Defense Dmytro Klymenkov and Tom Goffus, NATO's Assistant Secretary General for Operations," the statement said.

It added that improving defense procurement remains a top priority for Ukraine and NATO is committed to assisting with this process to ensure it is aligned with Allied best practices.

"NATO will continue to support Ukraine to the maximum extent, at every stage," the statement said.

The NATO-Ukraine Strategic Defense Procurement Review forms part of the Alliance's Comprehensive Assistance Package – an initiative launched in 2016 to support Ukraine's ability to bolster its own security and to implement wide-ranging reforms. The Review, championed by Norway and conducted at the request of the Ukrainian Ministry of Defense, is being led by subject-matter experts from across NATO and Ukraine in close collaboration with NATO's procurement agency.

The purpose of the review is to help Ukraine reform its defense procurement system and align it with NATO best practices and standards. Its recommendations will promote greater accountability, transparency and interoperability, helping to pave the way for Ukraine's future membership of the Alliance.

This week's conference represented the beginning of the first phase of the Review which involves the establishment of working groups to develop a set of policy recommendations to be endorsed at the Washington summit in July.