Zhumadilov: Ukrainian Air Defense to Receive Domestically Produced Missiles

The Ukrainian Ministry of Defense is purchasing domestically produced anti-aircraft missiles for air defense needs amid constant Russian attacks.

Arsen Zhumadilov, director of the Defense Procurement Agency (DPA), announced this in an interview with Militarnyi.

“Yes, there is such a product range, it is produced by our manufacturers,” he replied to a question about the purchase of domestic missiles.

At the same time, Zhumadilov refused to specify whether these were new Ukrainian developments or remnants of the Soviet era.

However, he noted that even products developed during the Soviet era are being modernized and refined and are undergoing appropriate testing.

“This is not the same product that existed during the Soviet era. It is still being refined and improved. It undergoes appropriate testing and modernization,” the Head of the Agency emphasized.

According to him, this practice also applies to domestic developments.

“And this process is ongoing for the entire range of products, both those that date back to Soviet times and those that have been developed since independence,” the Director of the Defense Procurement Agency explained.

Zhumadilov added that the Ministry of Defense also purchases anti-aircraft systems, but he did not say whether they were domestic or foreign.

Ukrainian air defense system

It should be recalled that Ukraine has developed a multi-caliber air defense system called Shershen.

According to the developers, this system has already been tested with five types of missiles. These include Soviet missiles, foreign-made missiles, and promising Ukrainian-made missiles.

The launcher is proposed to be similar to the Israeli Barak air defense missile system, in which the launcher is removed from the vehicle using a “multilift” system and left on the ground as a separate, autonomous object. The system is not tied to a specific radar station.