Eurasia Daily Monitor
By Yuri Lapaiev
September 17, 2025
On September 3, Danish Defense Minister Troels Lund Poulsen announced that Ukrainian defense company Fire Point will begin a production line in Denmark. Fire Point specializes in the production of long-range strike drones and cruise missiles, and the planned enterprise will be set up in Skridstrup, near the air base there. According to Poulsen, “This is the first time that Ukraine has created defense production outside its own country” (Ukrinform, September 3).
Details on production remain unknown. According to speculation from Danish media, the enterprise may focus on the production of fuel for long-range missiles and is expected to begin operations in December (DR, September 2). During a joint press conference with Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy announced that “Latvia, Lithuanian partners, and others will follow in the same way—and will build with Ukraine” (Ukraine’s President Official website, September 3).
As of July 2025, at least eight foreign defense companies announced plans to develop joint enterprises with Ukraine, including German arms manufacturing giant Rheinmetall and Turkish drone producer Baykar (Slovo i Dilo, July 1). Another joint project will be launched in the United Kingdom, where one of the largest Ukrainian drone manufacturers, Ukrspecsystems, plans to invest over $200 million in a new factory and training site. Production is scheduled to begin in early 2026 (UK Defence Journal, September 6). Kyiv is actively expanding its cooperation with international partners not only to maximize production capabilities and drive innovation but also to protect industrial infrastructure as Russian forces increasingly target Ukrainian defense companies and their assets.
Another major reason for this booming development stems from Kyiv’s growing uncertainty in receiving continued aid and arms supplies from its Western partners (Kyiv Post, March 15). Regardless of the outcome of stalled ceasefire negotiations, Ukraine needs to develop and produce effective means for deterrence that are also free from political restrictions on their use (see EDM, June 4, 2024). For Western capitals, the Ukrainian market offers impressive technologies, huge production potential, and a chance to test new weapons and systems on the ground. As a result, drone producers such as Germany’s Quantum Systems and others have already begun numerous joint projects with Ukraine (Ukrainska Pravda, August 30).
Ukraine’s experience and innovations have attracted the interest of an increasing number of partners. For example, Gaël Veyssière, the French ambassador to Ukraine, expressed France’s willingness to involve French defense and automotive companies in joint production with their Ukrainian counterparts. A project for the joint manufacture of drones is already in the works (Ukrinform, September 1). On September 3, at the International Defense Industry Exhibition in
Poland, Ukraine signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with the Taiwanese and Polish delegations, focusing on drone production (Taiwan News, September 3). Additionally, Yuliia Fediv, Ukraine’s ambassador to the Philippines, announced that the two countries are working toward signing an MOU on defense cooperation by October. A high-level Ukrainian delegation, including officials from the Ministry of Defense, is expected to visit Manila to discuss the draft agreement and the possibility of jointly producing Ukrainian-style drones, specifically uncrewed surface vessels (Naval News, September 3).
Today, Ukraine has the unique opportunity to test prototypes and new technologies in real combat conditions with immediate feedback on performance. The Ukrainian government decided to share this with its international partners through the “Test in Ukraine” platform and the Brave1 defense incubator (Government of Ukraine, July 18). The Ukrainian Ministry of Digital Transformation has described the initiative as “a platform for testing foreign technologies in Ukraine that can change the course of war.” Now, Kyiv’s international partners can officially test drones, ground robots, electronic warfare systems, and other new technologies in Ukraine (Golos Ukrainy, July 17). General Alexus Grynkewich, Supreme Allied Commander Europe and commander of U.S. European Command, recently highlighted this test opportunity for Western manufacturers during his address at the Emerging Technologies for Defense Conference and Exhibition in Washington. He suggested that companies should find themselves a partner in Ukraine and bring their best equipment for live tests (Defense One, August 28).
The Brave1 incubator is actively working to support domestic producers as well. Andriy Hrytseniuk, the new head of Brave1, said that currently, the main focus is on the development of long-range missiles and air defense capabilities, both drone interceptors and surface-to-air missiles (The War Zone, August 27). For such projects, Brave1 provides grants and other forms of support.
In early September, Zelenskyy signed a law on launching the Defense City initiative to support local weapons producers. Key features include exemptions from income, environmental, and land taxes, along with a “simplified regime for the international transfer of defense products” (ArmyInform, September 3). The Ukrainian Ministry of Defense has also set up a single portal of services for arms manufacturers in Ukraine, Zbroya.gov.ua. The site includes applications for preferential loans and grants, rapid prototype testing services, a library of components, and a regulatory database (Ministry of Defense of Ukraine, August 18). Kyiv’s increased attention to the domestic defense industry is beginning to bear fruit. According to the Ministry of Defense, in August, 80 new models of weapons and military equipment were approved for use by the Defense Forces, 78 percent of which were produced domestically (Ministry of Defense of Ukraine, September 4).
One widely covered success was the apparent full development of Fire Point’s FP-5 “Flamingo” ground-launched cruise missile, though some experts were initially skeptical (Defense Express, August 22). In particular, Oleg Katkov, editor-in-chief of the Ukrainian military portal Defense Express, emphasized that it is too early to talk about the missile’s effectiveness (YouTube/@єПитання, August 30). The same day as Katkov’s interview, it was reported that a Ukrainian missile had successfully hit a Russian Federal Security Service (FSB) border guard
unit in temporarily occupied Crimea. Later, videos appeared to show the launch of a cruise missile similar to the Flamingo, and satellite imagery confirmed the strike and its aftermath (BBC News Ukrainian, September 1; Exilenova OSINT community, September 4). Overall, the missile is reported to fly upwards of 3,000 kilometers (approximately 1,865 miles) and can carry up to 1 ton of explosives.
For Kyiv, the big challenge will be scaling production of the Flamingo (see EDM, July 8). Iryna Terekh, head of Fire Point, has said the company is only capable of assembling one cruise missile per day. Nevertheless, plans are in place to increase production to seven units per day (Kyiv Post, August 21). Fire Point has already succeeded in increasing production of its FP-1 kamikaze drones (the Ukrainian equivalent of the Russian-Iranian Shahed-136 drone) from 30 drones per month to a daily output of 100 (Euromaidan Press, August 23). Cruise missile production, however, involves more complex technology and a greater number of foreign components, which may not be easy to obtain. Here, growing partnerships with international companies will be essential.
Ukrainian defense companies and their partners remain high-priority targets for Russian strikes. The majority of companies and production facilities associated with Ukraine’s defense industry have already been attacked (see EDM, November 21, 2024). In particular, Turkish company Baykar’s plant, which is currently under construction in the Kyiv region, has already been hit by four Russian strikes in the last six months. Nevertheless, Baykar’s management has pledged to continue and soon complete construction (Slovo i Dilo, August 28). The threat of drone or missile strikes has not deterred many of Kyiv’s defense partners. The Ukrainian Air Force’s proactivity in clearing Ukraine’s airspace and balancing air superiority has gone a long way to sustaining that support (see EDM, July 17).
The Ukrainian government is seeing increased success in developing its defense industry, particularly through international cooperation in the forms of investments, relocation of production, and the creation of joint companies. Despite bureaucratic, financial, and security obstacles, the Ukrainian defense sector is showing rather positive dynamics and becoming more attractive to international partners (see EDM, July 8). For the Ukrainian military, this may soon mean that missile and drone production catches up with Russian production. For Kyiv’s international partners, the current environment gives them a chance to gain access to cutting-edge expertise and technologies, as well as to test their own products in real combat conditions.
Yuri Lapaiev is currently the editor-in-chief of Tyzhden (The Ukrainian Week) magazine. He graduated from the Ivan Kozhedub Air Force University in Kharkiv, with an MA in computer network engineering. Between 2006 and 2011, he served in Ukrainian Defense Intelligence, including as an analyst. In 2011-2015, Lapaiev worked as a marketing analyst in the head office of one of Ukraine’s largest mobile operators. From 2015 to 2016, he served in the Ukrainian Special Operation Forces and participated in the Anti-Terrorism Operation (ATO) in eastern Ukraine.