Formation of Institutional Support for Innovative Development of Weapons and Military Equipment in Ukraine

Innovations and the scale of their implementation in the sphere of defense and security, including the defense industry sector, are the fundamental basis for the development of national Armed Forces. This is especially relevant in the context of a full-scale war in the center of Europe and the general aggravation of military confrontation between the leading centers of power, which in turn has led to the transformation of national security strategies and military doctrines. From the perspective of ensuring the high-tech nature of the defense industry sector, this is also a prerequisite for the accelerated innovative modernization of the national economy, which is implemented in particular through mechanisms for the commercialization of military technologies and ensuring their wider application in civilian developments as dual-purpose innovations. The article is devoted to the study of the state of institutional support for the development of high-tech weapons and military equipment in Ukraine. The features of an effective institutional environment for the development of defense innovations are formulated. A cross-country analysis of the institutional transformation of defense and security sphere, including the development of high-tech weapons and military equipment, is carried out. The defining features of the world's leading countries in stimulating innovations in the field of defense and security are highlighted. The institutional environment of the European Union and Ukraine in the field of defense innovations is presented in the form of a matrix model. It is substantiated that the innovative development of the defense sector is characterized by a dual nature. On the one hand, the defense sector is a material embodiment of the state's monopoly obligation to protect the sovereignty and territorial integrity of the country, which determines its certain isolation, including due to the need to comply with state secret norms. On the other hand, it is the defense-industrial complex that is a significant driver of economic development and innovative progress in general, since it is this industry that is capable of creating additional closed cycles of expanded reproduction at the level of the national economy. It is proven that currently the capabilities of the domestic defense industry significantly exceed the state's purchasing capabilities. The factors of the influence of the institutional environment on the field of defense innovations are systematized. The factors hindering the progressive development of the defense innovation sector include: the lack of long-term planning for weapons procurement, as this blocks development, leads to higher product prices and a decrease in production volumes; limited financial resources of the state for the purchase of domestic weapons and military equipment and a narrow list of financial instruments applied to private defense enterprises; personnel shortage in the industry, which limits the possibilities for growth and implementation of high- tech projects in the defense innovation sector.