This was stated by Mykhailo Samus, director of the New Geopolitics Research Network and co-founder of the Defense Information Consortium, in an interview with Espreso.According to him, reliance on domestic resources is necessary, not just because of the shaky position of the U.S. administration on weapon supplies. "The speed of developing and scaling necessary anti-Shahed solutions depends primarily on Ukrainians themselves: even if the U.S. and the European Union were very eager to help Ukraine, they physically don’t have such systems," the expert notes.He further stated that volunteer and private initiatives are quickly creating and offering advanced technological solutions. However, without state-level support for scaling (including through assistance in production support), they will struggle to achieve the necessary technological and manufacturing efficiency. Therefore, it is essential to effectively integrate private initiatives and creativity with a centralized system of coordination and deployment at the state level."In this regard, it makes sense to implement long-standing plans for creating a so-called Ukrainian DARPA within the Ministry of Strategic Industry. This structure would accumulate advanced ideas, technologies, and solutions, providing support for their testing, expertise, and subsequent scaling," Samus believes.The Ministry of Strategic Industry can then take on the function of supporting the preparation of production for the rapid launch of serial production of necessary weapon systems. Additionally, this ministry can provide support for critically important programs and areas, such as the production of missile technology, ammunition, interceptor drones, ground drones, air defense systems, and reconnaissance."As a result, a defense-industrial matrix will be formed: Ministry of Defense (strategic planning and defining needs, procurement) – Ministry of Strategic Industry (accumulation of cutting-edge technologies and support for R&D, support for production preparation, coordination of important weapons development programs, ensuring scaling) – developers and manufacturers (regardless of ownership form, both Ukrainian and those from EU and NATO countries). This ecosystem could become the technological foundation for the advanced combat capabilities of Ukraine’s Defense Forces and provide a battlefield advantage," the expert concludes.