EU Commission Confirms Collaboration with Ukraine on Interceptor Missile Production

The European Commission announced that it has commenced work on advancing the development of interceptor missiles and other strategic air defense means.

This statement came in response to reports about the potential production of Patriot missiles in Ukraine.

During a briefing in Brussels, the Commission’s official spokesperson, Thoma Renier, stated that Ukraine and the European Union are already collaborating closely across most of these areas. He highlighted that interceptor missiles and other strategically important defense tools have been identified as critical and vital needs for the European bloc as well.

Renier explained that related projects have been incorporated into the dedicated European defense program, which provides EU member states with loans to expand production of strategically significant defense systems.

He added that the Commission would not comment on President Zelensky’s remarks regarding organizing production in Ukraine but confirmed that multiple joint workstreams exist and that progress is ongoing from their side.

These comments followed President Zelensky’s announcement of reaching an agreement with Donald Trump to license the production of Patriot systems in Ukraine.

Meanwhile, the US president did not rule out transferring the license for producing Patriot air defense systems to Kyiv, noting that Ukraine would be able to manufacture the interceptor missiles for this system once it receives sufficient guidance and clarifications on the operational procedures.