Ukraine supplies over 1,500 drone interceptors daily, defense minister says

"More than 1,500 anti-Shahed drones per day — in December–January, the Ministry of Defense reached a high average level in supplying interceptors to the military," Shmyhal said.

According to him, this enabled units to significantly increase their capabilities to counter aerial targets at various levels — from the front line to the protection of rear regions.

The minister noted that a separate tool for strengthening capabilities was the operation of the DOT-Chain Defence weapons marketplace. Through the platform, military units ordered and received more than 7,000 tactical-level interceptor drones, allowing them to quickly meet needs without waiting for centralized deliveries.

Shmyhal emphasized that interceptor drones are now a critically important element of a multi-layered air defense system. They make it possible to:

• Preserve expensive air defense missile resources by using more cost-effective means of interception;

• Increase the density of counter-UAV efforts without overloading air defense systems;

• Provide the front with effective solutions to protect personnel, equipment, and logistics.

Production of interceptor drones in Ukraine

Earlier, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy reported that by the end of November, Ukraine planned to reach production of 600–800 interceptor drones per day. At the same time, the implementation of these plans could be complicated by Russian strikes.

Defense Minister Denys Shmyhal also stated that in the near future, Ukraine should reach a level of 1,000 interceptor drones per day, calling this a response to nightly Russian attacks.

Currently, Ukraine already has interceptor drones capable of countering Russian Shahed drones, including models with jet engines.

In addition, Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine Oleksandr Syrskyi reported that Ukraine is building a layered system for intercepting Shahed drones using drones.