"Military Amazon": Reznikov speaks about the tasks of the Defence Procurement Agency and personnel decisions

UKRAINSKA PRAVDA — THURSDAY, 11 AUGUST, 2022, 11:28

Defence minister Oleksii Reznikov would like the newly created "Defence Procurement Agency" to eventually turn into a kind of "military Amazon". He also spoke about the root causes of the agency's creation and whether the head of the Office of the President Andrii Yermak influenced personnel decisions.

Source: Oleksii Reznikov interview for Ukrainian Pravda

Quote from Reznikov: "I have my ambitions that this agency would not just be a special exporter, but, ideally, would be a military ‘Amazon’. Where someone applies out of necessity, and someone makes an offer. I dream that all well-known manufacturers in the world will be there – except for Russian ones, of course – those whom we trust; they will be there, directly in the register, and will be able to supply us directly without intermediaries."

Details: Reznikov promised that "the first contract that will be signed by the agency will be a clear one, with a well-known public company." However, he did not want to disclose details.

Reznikov explained that one of the reasons for the agency's creation was the need to make purchases transparent and eliminate the corruption component. Because merchants did not understand that there was a war going on in Ukraine, said the head of the Defence Department, they sought to have their benefits, rather than providing weapons.

In addition, the defence minister claims that his decision to appoint Denys Sharapov, a former business partner of Andrii Yermak, as head of the agency was not influenced by the head of the Office of the President of Ukraine.

Quote from Reznikov: "I can't be influenced in principle. Even though we know Andrii Yermak, no one influences me in making personnel decisions."  

Details: Reznikov stressed that following agreements with President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, he formed the team independently. He added that Sharapov was "approved for the position for three weeks."

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