Ukraine is facing growing challenges in defending against Russian air attacks as it lacks sufficient air-defense missiles to intercept ballistic missiles, while Russia is developing new and faster weapons.

Axar.az reports, citing German newspaper Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung (FAZ), that Ukraine’s air defenses have recently been unable to intercept some ballistic missiles because of shortages of Patriot interceptor missiles, particularly PAC-3s, which are designed to counter ballistic threats.

Kyiv is seeking additional air-defense support from the United States, European countries and South Korea.

In the longer term, Ukraine expects improved French-Italian SAMP/T systems and is also working with European partners on its own air-defense system, known as Freyja. However, a prototype is not expected until the middle of next year.

Ukrainian military analyst Oleksiy Melnyk said interceptor missiles were essentially “painkillers rather than a cure,” arguing that Ukraine also needs the ability to strike Russian missiles before launch by disrupting production and locating launchers.

Meanwhile, Russia is adjusting its drone production. New Geran models are being equipped with jet engines instead of propellers, making them significantly faster and reducing the time available for interception.

Russia is also deploying new weapons known as Banderol, which have shorter ranges but resemble cruise missiles in their flight characteristics. According to Melnyk, they can be countered using systems designed to intercept cruise missiles, but their lower production cost could make defending against them economically challenging.