Ukraine hosted an international defense industry conference as part of a government effort to ramp up weapons production and reduce foreign dependence on arms deliveries.

"Our first task is to win this war and return a lasting and, most importantly, reliable peace to our people. We will accomplish this task through our cooperation with you," Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said in a speech to open the event.

"We are interested in localizing the production of equipment necessary for our defense... and advanced defense systems used by our soldiers that give Ukraine the best results at the front today," he said.

Zelenskyy said around 250 defense companies from more than 30 countries were gathered at the event. He said defense ministers from several countries were also present.

The forum comes a day after it was announced that the defense ministers of the UK and France paid surprise visits to Kyiv to show support for Ukraine.

Jens Stoltenberg, the secretary-general of NATO, also paid a visit earlier this week to Kyiv. He said he discussed with Zelenskyy "Ukraine's most urgent needs" and the "next steps in NATO's support."

Western countries have spent billions on supplying weapons and military aid to Ukraine. Some companies, like German arms manufacturer Rheinmetall, announced earlier this year that it would be working to build armored tanks inside Ukraine.