Ukraine is developing a missile capable of reaching Moscow - The Economist

Ukraine has begun developing a new missile called Trembita, which is expected to become an important element in the country's defense strategy. One of the versions of this missile will be capable of reaching Moscow.

This was reported by The Economist, citing information from the Ukrainian military. The development of the Trembita has lasted only a year and a half, which is an impressive period for such a complex engineering task.

The basic version of the missile has a speed of 400 km/h and a range of up to 200 km, while a more powerful one designed for more distant targets is under development. Serial production is planned after the final tests are completed.

"The Trembita is one of several missile projects the country hopes will ignite a resurgence in its domestic industry, which was brought to a halt in 1994 by the Budapest Memorandum. It saw Ukraine surrender its nuclear-armed ICBMs in exchange for what turned out to be useless security assurances," the article states.

A dozen new missile and missile-drone crossovers are already flight-ready, and they may be joined by several smaller projects. One of the most famous is the Neptune, a long-range cruise missile developed on the basis of anti-ship weapons. It was this missile that sank the Russian flagship Moskva in 2022.

Ukraine's Vice Prime Minister Mykhailo Fedorov noted that he is working to reduce barriers to the development of the missile industry.

"Everything that is given freedom in Ukraine flies. 2025 will be the year of the Ukrainian cruise missile," he said.

The missile program is "tightly guarded" as Russia has been constantly trying to hit production facilities, resulting in casualties among workers. In December 2023, several Russian missiles struck a Kyiv-based Neptune missile manufacturing facility. And in November 2024, Russian forces attacked Pivdenmash in Dnipro with an Oreshnik ballistic missile.

Volodymyr Horbulin, a former national security adviser, noted that the missile production program continues, although components are manufactured at numerous hidden sites such as garages. Horbulin also advises several projects in this area.

The Economist notes that the main problem is funding. Although the state is ready to invest in the development, a significant part of the funds must be invested by the engineers and private enterprises.

As a reminder, Ukrainian engineers from the volunteer design bureau PARS are developing the Trembita missile with the participation of volunteers from the NGO Vidsich.

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