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MOSCOW, December 30. /TASS/. The value of major Western defense corporations has risen amid the ongoing military activities in Ukraine, Serb protesters in northern Kosovo are beginning to dismantle barricades and China is about to open up to the world after three years of pandemic isolation. These stories topped Friday’s newspaper headlines across Russia.   Vedomosti: Western defense corporations profit handsomely off Ukrainian conflict The market value of major Western defense corporations rose by 21.5% in 2022 amid Russia’s military operation in Ukraine and rearmament activities in Europe, Vedomosti estimated, based on data from Defense News and Tradingview. Arms manufacturers have turned up probably the main beneficiaries of the political crisis in Europe. As many as 40 countries and over 130 companies are involved in weapons supplies to Kiev, about half of which (60 firms) are American and another 55 are European. Developments in Ukraine have really increased the capitalization of defense companies, Researcher at the Russian Academy of Sciences’ Institute of World Economy and International Relations Dmitry Stefanovich points out. The trend is largely rooted in a changed attitude to the defense industry in general and forecasts about the intensity of military activities. Defense corporations are benefiting not only from weapons supplies to Ukraine but also from rearmament processes in Europe. Until recently, European Union countries provided weapons to Kiev from stocks, which were mostly Soviet-made, and replenished them with new arms, said Mikhail Barabanov, an expert at the Center for Analysis of Strategies and Technologies. Now, Ukraine is getting more and more new weapons. As a result, military corporations are doing better than the market. The conflict in Ukraine united NATO around the US and brought "American leadership" back, boosting demand for weapons. The purchase of weapons is being viewed as an investment into US-guaranteed security, Barabanov emphasized. "The West will continue to bankroll Kiev because the Americans need the war to keep their defense industry busy. The process has a multiplicative effect, promoting the entire economy’s growth, which is crucial for overcoming stagnation," Associate Professor at the Financial University Oleg Komolov noted.