Air defense upgrade: Zelenskyy confirms number of NASAMS in service
Photo: President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy (president.gov.ua)
Ukraine already has more than ten Norwegian-made NASAMS air defense systems in service, significantly strengthening protection of its skies. In addition to supplying the systems themselves, Norway is helping secure missiles for them from other allied countries, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said, according to NRK News.
Read also: Norway delivers major batch of NASAMS air defense missiles to Ukraine
The head of state stressed that the Norwegian air defense systems have become substantial support for Ukrainian forces. Although the exact number of systems is not being disclosed, their total has already exceeded ten units.
"I will not name the exact number of NASAMS we have, but it is more than ten, and we continue to receive them. We have also received Norwegian-made missiles for NASAMS," Zelenskyy said.
Diplomatic support and joint production
The president noted that even Norway’s domestic stockpiles were not sufficient to meet Ukraine’s missile needs. Therefore, Oslo worked at the political level with other countries to arrange additional ammunition supplies.
According to Zelenskyy, Ukraine has also been working in parallel on joint production and the acquisition of IRIS-T systems. He compared the process to a “wave,” where the initiative of one country encouraged other genuine allies to step up their support.
What is NASAMS
NASAMS (Norwegian Advanced Surface to Air Missile System) is a modern medium-range air defense system developed through a strategic partnership between Kongsberg Defense & Aerospace and Raytheon.
The system's history began in 1998 with its first generation, while the most technologically advanced version, NASAMS III, was introduced in 2019. This mobile air defense system has demonstrated high effectiveness in intercepting a wide range of aerial threats, from aircraft and helicopters to complex ballistic and cruise missiles such as Iskander and Tochka-U.
Cooperation around the system has reached a new level through direct engagement between Ukraine and Norway. Ukraine's state defense concern Ukroboronprom and Kongsberg Defense & Aerospace are working on deeper integration of Ukrainian air defense systems into the unified NASAMS infrastructure.
An important step in this direction was the opening of a Kongsberg office in Ukraine last year, enabling faster equipment servicing and the implementation of joint defense solutions.
