Ukraine far from producing Storm Shadow/SCALP missiles on its own — UK defense official

PARIS, October 9. /TASS/. Ukraine is still a long way from independently producing Western Storm Shadow/SCALP cruise missiles due to the complexity of these weapons systems, UK Under-Secretary of State for the Armed Forces Louise Sandher-Jones told Le Figaro.

"I think we are still a long way from that due to the complexity of these weapons systems. We have already begun moving in this direction, but we are also considering other projects that could be implemented in the short term, including in the area of striking targets at operational depth," she said.

According to the defense official, Kiev’s needs are not limited to Storm Shadow and SCALP missiles. She noted that the UK military is working with Ukraine on the Brakestop project, which involves developing a low-cost, long-range cruise missile. Sandher-Jones noted that its development is focused on reducing production costs and ensuring the weapons can be manufactured in sufficient quantities.

In September, UK Prime Minister Andy Burnham announced that his government had agreed to allow the MBDA defense company to transfer classified data on UK components for the SCALP long-range missile to Kiev. At that time, he also discussed the matter with French President Emmanuel Macron, who had announced back in July that an agreement had been reached with Kiev on the licensed production of various weapons, including AASM guided bombs, Aster 30 missiles for the SAMP-T air defense system, and SCALP missiles.

The SCALP (the French version of the UK’s Storm Shadow missile) is an air-launched cruise missile equipped with a subsonic turbojet engine, an infrared homing system, and an onboard processor with GPS. It can fly at extremely low altitudes (30-40 meters).