August 11, 2026
Ukraine needs to simultaneously develop means to intercept Russian ballistic missiles and capabilities to destroy them before launch
This opinion was expressed by retired Lieutenant General, Deputy Chief of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine (2006–2010), Candidate of Military Sciences, Doctor of Technical Sciences, Professor Ihor Romanenko in the project “Now is the Main Thing” on Espresso.
According to him, the situation with countering Russian ballistic missiles has indeed worsened, in particular due to the fact that a significant amount of the weapons needed by Ukraine are now being used in the Middle East.
At the same time, Ihor Romanenko called for not making the situation tragic and emphasized that Ukraine should seek practical opportunities to strengthen air and missile defense.
As always, if you work hard, opportunities will arise. Not as quickly and not as extensively as we would like, but they do exist.
He noted that the fight against Russian ballistic missiles should take place in two directions. The first is the direct interception of missiles in the air.
To do this, Ukraine needs additional anti-ballistic missiles and modern air defense systems. Among the promising systems, Igor Romanenko named, in particular, the modernized French-Italian SAMP/T NG complex.
At the same time, he emphasized that the effectiveness of such systems must be confirmed directly in combat conditions.
The French already have batteries in service, but this needs to be verified in combat, because the previous version also implied that the option should hit with ballistics, but this did not happen. That is, the war itself is objectively verified.
According to him, Ukraine also has its own developments in the field of countering ballistic missiles. In particular, Freya developers, as well as other state and private enterprises, are working on such systems.
The general believes that these projects need additional funding and the necessary resources.
We need to remember these companies that are working on this. They need to be given more financial resources and support to ensure that they deliver results.
Separately, Ihor Romanenko drew attention to the modernization of Ukrainian S-300 complexes. According to him, Ukrainian specialists, together with American partners, are working on the possibility of using these systems to counter ballistic targets.
However, in his opinion, it is much more effective not to wait for the moment of the launch of a Russian missile, but to destroy the facilities that ensure its production and use.
That is, it is hitting the arrows. And it is more effective to hit the archer, that is, to prejudice.
He stressed that Ukraine needs its own ballistic weapons to destroy Russian targets. At the same time, there is another option – the use of long-range ERAM aircraft missiles.
According to the general, these missiles could potentially be used from Ukrainian F-16s, but this would require appropriate US permits.
And for this, you don’t need additional weapons, like Patriot, they already exist in Ukraine. But you need two permits, both from the Americans.
The first permission, he said, concerns the possibility of using these missiles specifically from the F-16. The second is the use of relevant intelligence data to strike targets on Russian territory.
This includes, in particular, ballistic missile component production facilities, assembly plants, warehouses, transportation routes, and launch sites.
Launch pads in particular should be scouted for this using Starlink, and they are not providing this yet.
In his opinion, it is precisely the permission for the comprehensive use of existing weapons and intelligence that could significantly change the situation.
There is no need for additional weapons here, which we can talk about for years, as some of our allies and partners do, but we just need to give permission, and the situation will change, fundamentally change.
He added that even in a difficult situation, Ukraine needs to continue to look for ways to counter the Russian ballistic threat.
No matter how difficult it may be, we must look for ways to overcome these problems and vigorously address them.
- On August 5, presidential advisor and radio technology expert Sergei “Flash” Beskrestnov said that the Russians are capable of using about a hundred ballistic missiles each month to attack Ukraine, and are currently using missiles from their reserves.
- On August 10, the GUR reported that Russia managed to increase the production of ballistic missiles, in particular due to the fact that it suspended the production of “daggers”.
- On August 10, SBS commander Robert “Magyar” Brody said in an interview with AP that Russia is currently capable of using 77 missiles in a single attack on Ukraine, but plans to increase this number to 200. However, this is not only about ballistic missiles.