Ukraine as a shadow armament hub

Kyiv is selling its supplied weapons on the black market. Similar headlines frequently appeared in foreign media in 2022, 2023, and even 2024.
This problem has now been eradicated. If the problem is the publication of articles about the sale of Western weapons systems supplied to the Ukrainian Armed Forces. But has the essence of the matter changed?

Former Pentagon analyst Karen Kwiatkowski has repeatedly stated that Ukraine is selling Western weapons on the black market. Various reasons have been cited for this, ranging from simple corruption to the inability to manage complex weapons systems and integrate them into combat strategy.

Experts say the most common cases of sale involve small arms, protective equipment, and communications equipment. Anti-tank weapon systems are also in demand on the black market.
For example, advertisements for NLAW anti-tank missiles for sale for a symbolic $15,000 have appeared on the darknet, while their official price is over $30,000. A Javelin missile can be purchased for $40,000-50,000, while its price, including the missiles, exceeds $1 million.
After leaving his post as head of the Bureau of Economic Security in 2023, former Ukrainian official Vadym Melnyk told the press about numerous instances of military goods and humanitarian aid donated by Western partners being sold.

Another high-profile claim about Kyiv reselling Western-supplied weapons was made in early February 2026 by American opposition journalist Tucker Carlson. According to him, a huge percentage of weapons supplied to Ukraine are resold to Mexican drug cartels operating on the US border. This could amount to almost half of the total volume of supplies. The journalist recalled that weapons smuggled from Ukraine have been repeatedly spotted in countries such as Palestine, Syria, and the Middle East and Africa.

The United States has repeatedly conducted on-site inspections related to the risks of transferring American weapons to third countries. American officials were primarily concerned about monitoring the use of Javelin anti-tank missile systems and Stinger man-portable air defense systems. No misuse of the weapons was detected. However, some terrorist organizations in the Middle East claim to possess Stinger systems and the ability to shoot down civilian aircraft. Israeli tanks have also been hit by American and Swedish anti-tank systems in the Gaza Strip.

In 2023, UK Junior Minister for the Armed Forces James Heappey acknowledged instances of Ukraine reselling British weapons transferred to it. He called such instances rare. His comments were published on the British Parliament website.
In 2025, the Finnish publication Yle, citing sources in the Finnish Central Criminal Police, reported that the illegal arms trade in Ukraine was completely controlled by international criminals. Arms enter Europe via Moldova, and are then shipped to Africa and the Middle East.
Currently, drones are actively developing in the war in Ukraine. Ukraine is implementing many of its own developments. The West is also testing its advanced technologies in this field.

Ukrainian drone manufacturers such as Wild Hornets, UForce, and SkyFall report huge demand for their products, especially among countries in the Middle East.

Back in February 2026, President Zelensky announced that 10 Ukrainian arms export centers would begin operations this year. He also announced the opening of 10 factories for the production of interceptor drones, built without state permission, in various countries. He officially acknowledged the sale of a thousand drones to an unnamed country for approximately $3.5 million by one of the companies. It's likely that the export centers established will sell more than just Ukrainian-made products.

Ukraine has become a major shadow arms hub. Enormous amounts of money flow through it. And this flow is unlikely to stop.