The Defense Minister urged the transfer of 10% of existing missile stocks for Patriot and IRIS-T
Minister of Defence of Ukraine Yevhenii Khmara, during an address to representatives of the E5 defense ministries, emphasized the need to strengthen air defense immediately and fund the production of Ukrainian drones for 2027. European high-ranking officials and NATO leadership representatives also joined the meeting. This is reported by the portal PromPolitInform, citing information from the Ministry of Defence of Ukraine.
The meeting was attended by European Commissioner for Defence and Space Andrius Kubilius, EU High Representative Kaja Kallas, and NATO Deputy Secretary General Radmila Šekerinska. The participants discussed the defense needs of the Ukrainian state for the near and medium term.
Interceptors from existing arsenals
The Ukrainian side defines strengthening the air shield to protect cities and critical infrastructure from air attacks as a primary task. Kyiv offers partners an exchange mechanism whereby missiles arrive immediately from existing arsenals and are subsequently replaced by newly contracted batches.
The head of the agency appealed to the E5 states with a call to allocate 10% of the existing stocks of anti-aircraft interceptors. This primarily concerns ammunition for Patriot and IRIS-T anti-aircraft missile systems, the procurement of which is carried out at the expense of a European loan.
Need for portable systems
The participants paid special attention to countering new types of enemy targets in the airspace. In particular, there is an acute need for man-portable air-defense systems to effectively combat jet unmanned aerial vehicles.
Ukraine counts on both direct supplies of the specified weapons from the arsenals of allies and attracting funding to carry out new procurements. Such steps should ensure uninterrupted air defense.
Scaling drone production
The development and support of unmanned systems has been identified as the second key area. Domestic enterprises have the potential to double drone output next year provided they are timely provided with resources.
«We propose not just increasing purchases, but scaling the joint production of Ukrainian drones on the territory of other countries. This will make it possible to increase production and provide Ukraine with the necessary drones. Plus, it will strengthen the defense capabilities of our partners as well», — said Yevhenii Khmara.
The head of the defense department stressed the need for advance planning of military assistance for 2027. According to him, all decisions made must correspond to the real conditions of hostilities, where the importance of unmanned technologies continues to grow.
Photo: Ministry of Defence of Ukraine
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