Shmyhal says Ukraine will soon produce 1,000 interceptor drones daily
Ukraine's goal of ensuring the ability to use at least 1,000 interceptor drones per day will be realized in the near future, Ukrainian Defense Minister Denys Shmyhal has said.
"We have set ourselves a goal of 1,000 drones. This is not just a goal, it is a necessity to effectively shoot down all Russian drones. We understand that 800 drones per night is the level that the Russian Federation has already demonstrated in practice. Accordingly, we need to have at least 1,000 interceptor drones. This level will be achieved. I cannot say what the level is today, but this level will be realized in the near future," Shmyhal said at a press conference with his Polish counterpart in Kyiv.
He stressed that the goal is to intercept all Russian drones on the territory of Ukraine. At the same time, the minister noted that for Ukraine, “it is not a question of producing 1,000 drones.”
“We can reach this level very quickly. Right away. The question is the number of ground control complexes, the number of radars, the number of relevant elements, which, in particular, use artificial intelligence for guidance,” Shmyhal emphasized.
As the head of the department explained, there is a whole ecosystem for intercepting drones, and it consists not only of interceptor drones. “This is just the tip of the iceberg of a large coordinated system that must work, which includes electronic warfare systems, radars, etc. It is a large complex, and its implementation takes some time. But we are confidently moving towards the goal that has been set,” he assured.
As reported, in July of this year, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy stated that he had tasked UAV manufacturers with ensuring that Ukraine has the ability to use at least 1,000 interceptor drones per day.
