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Ukraine Wants to Produce Its Own Air Defense—and It Needs Europe’s Help
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![Ivan_khomenko]( "Photo of Ivan Khomenko")
-21d0b63c17f6020e4df75f6c6f9a2f4f.jpg "Photo of Ivan Khomenko")
During an address to the EU Foreign Affairs Council on April 14, Ukraine’s Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha called on European governments to support Ukraine’s efforts to develop its own strategic-level air defense system.
He also urged EU partners to strengthen military aid, increase pressure on Russia, and provide targeted assistance to the cities of Sumy and Kryvyi Rih following recent deadly missile strikes.
According to Sybiha, the ballistic attack on Sumy and the prior strike on Kryvyi Rih, which killed nine children, demonstrated that Russia continues to escalate the war and rejects any peaceful resolution.
“Palm Sunday and the beginning of Easter week should have been a time for peace,” he said. “But Putin turned it into a time of terror. The strike on Sumy was not just an attack on a Ukrainian city — it was an attack on the shared values of modern Europe.”
The Minister called for urgent reinforcement of Ukraine’s air defense capacity, including the provision of additional launchers, missiles, spare parts, and complete systems. He emphasized that Ukraine is already developing a long-range air defense system and invited European states to invest in this program to accelerate its implementation.
Earlier, Ukraine revealed that its Soviet-era Buk-M1 systems had been upgraded under the FrankenSAM program to fire US-made RIM-7 Sea Sparrow missiles.
While the missile range is shorter than the original Soviet variant, the integration ensures a steady supply from NATO stockpiles. Ukrainian operators report the system is actively used on the eastern front to intercept drones and missiles amid growing shortages of air defense assets.
