The UK is preparing to transfer blueprints for its British-French designed Storm Shadow cruise missiles to Ukraine, allowing the country to produce the weapons domestically. This follows a similar decision by France regarding its Scalp missiles.
While this move signals Western nations' willingness to share expertise, it is not anticipated to dramatically change the course of the conflict. Storm Shadow and Scalp missiles, developed in the 1990s and costing around £1 million each, have already been supplied to Kyiv by both Britain and France and used to strike military targets within Russia.
Even with the blueprints, Ukraine may face challenges in sourcing components, and it could take months or years to manufacture the cruise missiles. Douglas Barrie, IISS Senior Fellow for Military Aerospace, noted that the impact will depend on how quickly Ukrainian-assembled SCALP cruise missiles can be introduced into service.
The UK military is no longer purchasing Storm Shadow missiles for itself. Instead, under Project Brakestop, it is developing its own long-range cruise missiles, free of foreign components and costing less than half the price of a Storm Shadow. The UK hopes to have this new weapon ready by the end of the year and plans to supply it to Ukraine.
Ukraine has significantly increased its domestic weapons production, now making 70% of its own armaments. The country is on track to build 10 million drones by the end of this year, utilising mass-produced Chinese parts for cost-effectiveness.
However, Ukraine still requires certain weapons it struggles to produce, such as fast fighter jets and, most urgently, Patriot interceptors to counter Russian ballistic missiles. The US is planning to increase Patriot missile production, but this will take several years. Ukraine has also started Project Freya, a programme to develop its own interceptor missiles with European support.