Zelenskyy to Europe: It's not a solution to fight cheap drones with $1M rockets
Photo: Volodymyr Zelenskyy, President of Ukraine (Vitalii Nosach/RBC-Ukraine)
Ukraine is inviting its allies to join a new program for funding, producing, and developing interceptor drones to counter enemy attack UAVs, says Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy during a briefing with Finnish leader Alexander Stubb.
"Ukraine is proposing to all European neighbors — both our neighbors and Russia's neighbors — a joint program for financing, production, and development of interceptor drones," Zelenskyy said.
According to him, thanks to wartime production, Ukraine has become a leader in this field.
"This needs to move forward as quickly as possible, without bureaucratic delays. We are open to such cooperation," the president added.
Zelenskyy stressed that no country in the world has enough missiles to shoot down every type of drone. "A missile that costs a million dollars — no matter what kind it is — cannot be used to take down drones that cost tens of thousands, or even $100,000," he said.
Poland's air defense
"We have offered our assistance to Poland, because Patriots won't help in the fight against Shaheds — and they won't help anyone. These systems are designed primarily for ballistic missiles. The main producer, the United States, currently manufactures only 50–60 missiles per month," Zelenskyy explained.
He noted that when Russia launches 500–800 drones a day, it's clear that Patriot is not the answer. A Patriot missile costs $2–3 million, while a Shahed (or Geran) costs up to $100,000. "Using systems like Patriot against drones is not a solution," he emphasized.
"We are open and ready to help, and [US President] Donald Trump has said he will send the necessary military specialists," Zelenskyy added.
He also said he had connected them with Ukrainian Defense Minister Denys Shmyhal and Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces Oleksandr Syrskyi. Syrskyi, in turn, is already in contact with Poland's military command — with only technical steps remaining.
Ukraine's drone development
In recent months, Ukraine has been actively developing interceptor drones as a reliable and relatively affordable defense against enemy UAVs.
According to Zelenskyy, during a massive attack on the night of September 7, Ukrainian interceptor drones destroyed more than 150 hostile drones.
It has also been reported that Britain and Ukraine will jointly design and produce advanced military equipment, including interceptor drones. Their first joint project, codenamed Project OCTOPUS, will create a new air-defense interceptor.
Mass production will begin in the UK, which plans to manufacture thousands of such drones per month to supply Ukraine.
