Zelenskyy announces tests of Freyja anti-ballistic system
Photo: Volodymyr Zelenskyy, President of Ukraine (Getty Images)
Ukraine will soon begin the first stage of testing of the Freyja anti-ballistic system, which Ukraine is developing jointly with its European allies, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy told DW.
According to the head of state, he expects the first tests to begin by the end of December 2026.
"Time is short," Zelenskyy stressed, commenting on Ukraine's urgency on the matter.
He also officially confirmed that new European companies continue to join the project. Several agreements were signed recently, but the president did not disclose the details.
By the way, during his visit to Canada, Zelenskyy said that Ukraine plans to have a new anti-ballistic system at its disposal by the end of the year.
Companies told us that developing a new ballistic system would take 20-30 years. Zelenskyy said he made it clear that Ukraine did not want the war to last that long, calling such a timeline outdated and saying that new technologies and a new Ukraine could make the process much faster. He added that Ukraine expected to have the first system by the end of this year.
The head of state expects Ukraine to gain a clearer understanding of the further timeline during meetings planned for late September in New York. At the same time, Kyiv is currently counting on additional Patriot air defense systems.
The president also noted that Ukraine trusts the American side, in particular because of US support in developing and implementing technologies.
By the way, it was previously reported that Fire Point plans to carry out the first interception of a ballistic missile as part of the Freyja project by mid-2027.
However, Zelenskyy recently warned that Russia would try to disrupt the project's implementation and throw "some kind of dirty trick" to delay the unification of partners.
