Production of Ukrainian Sapsan ballistic missiles is a vital necessity: military expert Ivan Kyrychevsky
In the Ukrainian information space, the topic of launching into mass production of domestic ballistic missiles causes conflicting assessments. Some commentators belittle the significance of these missiles, appealing to their range or pace of production. Others compare the Ukrainian development with the Russian “Iskanders” and draw conclusions about the alleged “inefficiency” of the initiative. Against this background, military expert Ivan Kyrychevskyi reasonably explains why the appearance of serial ballistics in Ukraine, in particular, the “Sapsan” missile, is a necessary condition for self-defense and preservation of statehood.
Ivan Kyrychevskyi emphasizes, that its own ballistic weapons are a basic need of any state in full-scale war. He believes that ballistic missiles are as mundane to a modern warring nation as a mobile phone or a toothbrush is to a person. The Sapsan missile, despite skeptical assessments of its technical characteristics, plays a critical role in the survival of Ukraine.
The expert notes that superficial judgments prevail in the discussions surrounding “Sapsan”. In particular, he cites examples of unconstructive criticism: they say that if the missile has a range of only 300 km, then it is not worth paying attention to, because it cannot hit targets deep in Russia. Another common remark is that if Ukraine is not capable of producing dozens of such missiles every month (as the Russian Federation does with the Iskanders), then it is better to focus on drones altogether. Kyrychevsky warns against such simplistic conclusions and believes that such sentiments harm the understanding of the essence – it is necessary to have ballistic missiles in any case.
He pays special attention to the role of own ballistics in operational response. As an example, Kyrychevsky cites a situation when the Russian “Iskanders” can suddenly come out of hiding and launch an attack on Kyiv. In such cases, there are literally a few minutes to react. And only its own operational-tactical missile is able to instantly respond to the threat. He emphasizes that these are not tasks that can be transferred to other types of weapons – no other system provides such speed and accuracy of response.
In a broader context, Kyrychevsky interprets the launch of serial production of missiles not only as a technical or engineering achievement, but as a deeply political gesture. The Russian Federation is systematically trying to make any complex production impossible in Ukraine, especially that which requires collective work, high organization and intellectual resources. The production of own missiles, according to the analyst, contradicts the very logic of Russian aggression, which involves the complete “demilitarization” of Ukraine. In this sense, the appearance of “Sapsana” is a direct challenge to these plans.
The military analyst also notes that today only 11 countries in the world are capable of producing ballistic missiles of their own production, and Ukraine is already included in this limited circle. We are talking about operational-tactical complexes: even countries like France, having intercontinental missiles, are now re-learning how to make short-range OTRKs. Therefore, he emphasizes the significance of the fact that Ukraine, despite all the difficulties, launches its own rocket in a series.
In addition, Kyrychevsky reminds that he intentionally used the comparison of a toothbrush and a mobile phone not to shock, but to convey that ballistics is not a “luxury item.” It is a means of survival for a state that is attacked by missiles almost every day. The appearance of the “Sapsan” is not only a technical solution, but also an indicator that Ukraine is capable of resisting both at the front and in the defense industry.
