Patriots running out? Ukraine's $700,000 answer to Russia's missile factories.
Part of composite article Ukraine builds $6.8B defense tech fund as 400 AI-Petri jammers deploy and 1,700 civilians hit by mines View full article →
Ukraine's US-supplied Patriot air defense systems are nearly depleted. Meanwhile, Russia produces about 100 of its deadliest ballistic missiles every month.
Unable to intercept them all, Ukraine is trying a different approach: striking the factories where the missiles are built.
Kyiv is also developing a cheaper alternative for defense — a homemade interceptor that costs about $700,000 each.