The priority for Ukrainian diplomats should be the Freya anti-ballistic initiative in Europe, as well as work on new drone agreements. President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy said this during his address at a meeting of diplomats in Kyiv, an LB correspondent reports.
“Your priority must be our anti-ballistic project, Freya... The worst consequence of Russia’s war against Ukraine is that the global ballistic threat will grow. Ukraine can produce the missile and the launcher. But we need other components and parts,” he said.
According to Zelenskyy, 10 countries have already joined the project, including Denmark, France, Spain, and Sweden. It is open to other participants.
The president stressed the importance of ambassadors’ involvement in this process.
“An ambassador must know how many air defence missiles there are in the country where they serve and how to ensure they are not sitting in warehouses but are in our launchers,” he said.
Volodymyr Zelenskyy emphasised that the requirement to negotiate weapons supplies from abroad applies to all ambassadors.
“Every ambassador must bring weapons. We need missiles, we need funding. This is the direct work of ambassadors,” Zelenskyy believes.
Ukraine’s ambassador to the Czech Republic, Vasyl Zvarych, who is being prepared for appointment as a deputy foreign minister, noted that the anti-ballistic coalition is generating strong interest and asked about Freya’s strategic goal: could it become the basis for arming NATO countries?
Answering the question about Freya, Zelenskyy said there are three tracks in the project’s development, but he can speak only about one. According to the president, “this must be our anti-ballistic system. There are missiles, there is a launcher — we need certain parts. We have brought together the manufacturers of these parts. We also need funding. Those countries that have Patriot missiles — we are waiting for them to join the anti-ballistic initiative.” Ukraine needs 100 such systems, Volodymyr Zelenskyy added.
The Freya Project
Russian ballistic attacks remain particularly painful for Ukraine due to a shortage of missiles capable of intercepting them. Anti-ballistic stockpiles have been further depleted by the war in the Middle East. This year there have already been several attacks in which Ukraine was unable to shoot down a single ballistic missile because it had nothing to do so with. For now, only PAC-3 missiles for Patriot air defence systems can counter ballistic threats in Ukraine.
Against this backdrop, Ukraine has stepped up efforts to create its own air defence system capable of intercepting ballistic missiles. It cannot independently ensure production of everything required, so it is inviting foreign partners to join. The Freya anti-ballistic system is intended to be an analogue of Patriot in terms of intercepting ballistic targets, but with more mass production and at a lower cost.
A prototype of the system is expected to be ready by mid-2027, the National Security and Defence Council said. Ukrainian missile and drone manufacturer Fire Point, which developed the Flamingo cruise missile, said it will be the lead industrial partner in the project. Last month, the company announced an agreement with German defence manufacturer Hensoldt to supply radars for the project.