Kathrine Frich
This missile allows Ukraine to bypass the strict limits placed on Western weapons.
When a long and brutal conflict grinds on, the balance of power can shift in an instant.
A single technological breakthrough is often all it takes to redraw the battle lines.
Now, one nation is preparing to unveil a game-changing tool that its rival has dreaded from the start.
A domestic breakthrough
Leaders in Kyiv are finally taking matters into their own hands. After relying heavily on foreign partners for long-range firepower, Ukraine is now building a massive weapon at home.
A domestic defense company called Fire Point created the new ballistic missile, according to Ziare. It is officially called the FP-9.
This system boasts an impressive reach of up to 855 kilometers and carries an 800-kilogram warhead. That distance easily allows forces to strike Moscow directly from Ukrainian soil.
Pressing for speed
President Volodymyr Zelensky wants this new weapon on the battlefield immediately. To make it happen, he recently urged the manufacturer to speed up the final stages of production.
The push follows the combat debut of a smaller tactical system, the FP-7, which Reuters reports has a range of roughly 250 kilometers.
Speaking to journalists on October 3, the Ukrainian leader made his timeline clear.
“I told them, where is my FP-9?” Zelensky told Reuters. “We need FP-9. And FP-9 will be (ready) this fall, I’m sure.”
Changing the target
This homegrown missile allows Ukraine to bypass the strict limits placed on Western weapons. It also unlocks a fresh strategy.
The military plans to cripple the Russian war machine directly at its source. Zelensky told Reuters that his forces will increase strikes on Russian oil refineries, answering Moscow’s continuous attacks on the Ukrainian energy grid.
“We must respond in any way (we can). To their attacks on our energy, we must respond to their energy. First of all, oil refineries, etc.: what gives them money for this war,” Zelensky said.
He was quick to clarify that his forces will keep their focus strictly military. “But we will not respond, of course, like them, to any civilian targets,” he added.
The final countdown
The wait for this heavy weapon is almost over. Engineers are finishing the project right now.
Irina Tereh serves as the chief executive at Fire Point. She stated that the FP-9 is in its final development stage and should be ready by the end of autumn.
If the timeline holds, a harsh new reality will soon set in for the Kremlin. A war that started with Russian forces marching toward Kyiv might soon feature heavy payloads landing right on Moscow’s doorstep.
