Zelenskyy Says Ukraine to Build Freyja Domestic Anti-Ballistic Missile System

According to Lianhe Zaobao citing Xinhua, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Ukraine will develop a domestically produced anti-ballistic missile system, citing capacity constraints for the US MIM-104 Patriot air defense system and Europe’s next-generation SAMP-T surface-to-air missile system. In a social media post on Friday (July 10), Zelenskyy said the system, named Freyja, will have interception capabilities comparable to the Patriot but will be easier to mass-produce and cheaper. Zelenskyy said Ukraine will soon hold its first meeting in France on building the system and will present the plan to countries that can help advance the project. He said Freyja could enter production quickly if it receives support from relevant countries and companies. The report added that Ukraine has relied on US-made Patriot systems to intercept Russian missiles, and that after fighting involving Iran, the US redeployed some missile defense systems from Europe to the Persian Gulf. The SAMP-T, known as Mamba, is Europe’s only air defense system with anti-ballistic missile capability and was developed by the Franco-Italian consortium Eurosam, entering service in 2008 and later deployed to Ukraine, but with limited output.