Volodymyr Zelensky announced the first combat use of the Ukrainian-made FP-7 missile, capable of hitting targets up to 250 kilometers, although he did not reveal what the target was. The development seeks to expand kyiv's military autonomy as Russia intensifies its attacks and Ukraine continues to rely on American Patriots to intercept ballistic missiles.

First modification: 02/10/2026 - 04:27Last modification: 02/10/2026 - 04:42

Ukraine used a self-made tactical ballistic missile in combat for the first time, a step with which kyiv seeks to expand its ability to attack Russian targets and reduce its dependence on weapons supplied by its allies.

The announcement was made this Thursday, October 1, by President Volodymyr Zelensky, although without specifying almost any details about the operation.

"Ukrainian tactical ballistic missile. FP-7. First use in combat. Thank you for the result. Next step: production. Glory to Ukraine!" wrote the president in a brief message published on his X and Telegram accounts.

Zelensky accompanied his words with a 26-second video in which the launch of the missile can be observed in the distance and during the night. He did not specify when or where it was used, what the objective was or what damage it caused.

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At the moment, the lack of information prevents evaluating the result of the first attack. But the launch represents progress for a Ukrainian defense industry that during the war accelerated the development of its own drones and missiles to offset, at least partially, its dependence on Western supplies.

A missile with a range of up to 250 kilometers

The FP-7 was developed by Fire Point, a Ukrainian company specializing in the manufacture of drones and missiles.

According to the specifications released by the manufacturer, it can reach targets located at a distance of up to 250 kilometers and carry a load of up to 200 kilos. Military analysts cited by the Reuters agency place its range at around 200 kilometers.

The missile is fired from a mobile ground platform, allowing the system to be moved and deployed quickly. It can reach a speed of about 1,500 meters per second, according to information released in Ukraine.

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Due to its range, the FP-7 is not intended to reach points located deep inside Russia, but mainly to attack targets in the front or near rear.

Among the possible targets are command posts, weapons depots, radars, air defense systems, missile launchers, drone bases and airfields, as explained by Nazarii Barchuk, an analyst at the Ukrainian Center for Security and Cooperation, to 'The Kyiv Independent'.

The weapon has been compared to the American ATACMS that Washington provided to Ukraine, although Fire Point claims that the FP-7 can be manufactured at a considerably lower cost.

The advantage of having your own ballistic missile

Ukraine has already developed weapons capable of reaching much further than the FP-7. Its long-range drones have attacked military installations, warehouses and refineries hundreds of kilometers from the border.

kyiv has locally made cruise missiles. However, a ballistic missile offers different characteristics.

Unlike drones, which can take hours to reach their target and are relatively slow, such a missile ascends quickly and then descends towards the target at high speed, reducing the time available to detect and intercept it.

It can also carry a larger explosive payload than many of the long-range drones used by Ukraine.

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These characteristics can be very useful against protected military targets relatively close to the front. It would also allow kyiv to try to attack some of the places from which Russia launches its own weapons against Ukrainian territory.

But there is an important difference between having a missile and being able to use it on a sustained basis.

“Next step: production,” Zelensky himself wrote when announcing the premiere of the FP-7.

The phrase refers to one of Ukraine's main challenges: the country produces missiles in much smaller quantities than Russia and it is unknown how many FP-7s it could manufacture or how quickly.

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Michael Kofman, a researcher at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, told the 'Wall Street Journal' that the development is positive for Ukraine, but that its importance will depend on the real characteristics of the weapon and, above all, its production rate.

The chief designer of Fire Point himself had raised the same problem months ago. He assured that manufacturing just “two or three ballistic missiles a month” would not have an effect capable of making a difference on the front.

The other battle: how to stop Russian missiles

The debut of the FP-7 comes at a time when Ukraine faces the problem of how to protect its cities from Russian ballistic missiles.

Russia has stepped up its airstrikes as Ukraine prepares for another winter of war. Added to the ballistic missiles is a new generation of Russian powered drones that fly faster and higher than conventional Shaheds and put Ukrainian defenses to the test.

In recent days, kyiv has once again been the target of attacks with this type of drone. Ukrainian defenses are finding it increasingly difficult to intercept them and, at the same time, are suffering from a shortage of ammunition for some of their most advanced systems.

The problem is even greater when it comes to ballistic missiles. Zelensky acknowledged last week that Ukraine has managed to develop different solutions against drones and cruise missiles, but that the Patriot systems remain for now its main effective response against ballistic attacks.

kyiv has been trying for months to obtain US authorization to locally manufacture missiles for the Patriot system.

In July, Zelensky assured that Ukraine and the United States had reached a political agreement on production licenses. Weeks later, President Donald Trump said he had not yet given his approval and that talks were continuing.

The development of its own ballistic missile does not solve that problem, since the FP-7 used this week is an offensive weapon, not an interceptor.

In any case, Fire Point is working in parallel on a variant, called FP-7.X, intended precisely to shoot down ballistic missiles within the Freyja project.

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Freyja, an alternative still in development

The project brings together the Ukrainian Government, Fire Point and European companies that provide radars, components and technology with the aim of developing a more economical anti-ballistic system that is less dependent on a single supplier.

Ukraine and several of its allies announced a coalition to advance Freyja in July, and kyiv hopes to have a prototype in the first half of 2027.

The project is presented as a complement and, eventually, a cheaper alternative to the American Patriot, although it is still under development and does not solve Ukraine's immediate air defense needs.

Fire Point is also working on the FP-9, another ballistic missile that the company says will have a range of up to 850 kilometers and could be ready by the end of this year.

If both projects manage to pass the tests and the first launches into production in significant quantities, Ukraine would considerably expand the number of Russian targets that it can hit with its own weapons.

With EFE, Reuters and local media

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