Kyiv granted licence to build cruise missiles in fresh boost for its defence industry

Joe Barnes

Joe is based in Brussels, where he focuses on European politics and defence. He has covered the Ukraine war and its peace negotiations and reported on US elections from Washington DC

Published 14 July 2026 

France has given the blueprints for its Scalp-EG cruise missile to Ukraine as part of a defence deal.

The pact grants Kyiv the right to produce the weapon – essentially the same low-observable cruise missile as the British Storm Shadow – at factories in the war-torn country.

It also paves the way for Ukrainian arms manufacturers to build Aster air-defence missiles and Armement Air-Sol Modulaire (AASM) precision-guided air-to-ground bombs.

The deal includes an order for 16 new French-made Rafale fighter jets and four Samp/t surface-to-air batteries, making Ukraine ‌the first country to deploy the Franco-Italian system in combat.

France and Italy also ​authorised licensed production in Ukraine of Aster 30 ‌interceptor missiles.

Volodymyr Zelensky, Ukraine’s president, who was in Paris to sign the agreement, said it “reflects France’s true leadership in defence cooperation with Ukraine, in the interest of all of Europe”.

The Franco-Ukrainian deal will raise questions over whether Britain signed off on domestic production of the Storm Shadow/Scalp. But it marks another success for Ukraine’s blossoming defence industry.

Mr Zelensky sealed the deal just days after Donald Trump promised to allow Ukraine to produce PAC-3 interceptors for the American-made Patriot air defence system.

The Rafales are expected to enter into operation in Ukrainian skies in 2028. Pilots will need extensive training to use them.

There were no proposed dates for when the first of the French weapons would roll off Ukrainian production lines. But the agreement stated: “France authorises the licensed production of AASM bombs and Scalp missiles in Ukraine before the end of 2026 and starting as soon as possible.”

Given the complexity in setting up factories, it is more likely the first missiles and bombs will be produced after any peace deal, and either be kept as a security guarantee or sold back into European stockpiles.

Air defence interceptors and deep-strike weapons, such as the Storm Shadow or Scalp, are increasingly important for Ukraine’s wartime strategy of striking targets deep inside Russia to dial up the pressure on Vladimir Putin.

Earlier this year, Ukraine used British Storm Shadow missiles to destroy one of Russia’s leading military production plants, for example, while missiles and drones struck dozens of Russian oil facilities.

But Kyiv also requires anti-air missiles to defend against crippling Russian missile attacks on its cities and energy infrastructure before the winter.

The long-range barrage is seen as Putin’s last remaining leverage over Kyiv in peace talks as his front-line gains have ground to a virtual halt.

Ukraine launches its own long-range attacks using domestically made drones to destroy Russian oil production and uses Western-donated missiles and bombs to hit military production sites and fortified bunkers behind the front lines.