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Ukraine will be able to strike Russia with domestically-made ballistic missiles within three to six months, the former Ukrainian defense minister Mykhailo Fedorov told CBS News in an exclusive interview.
So far, Ukraine has relied on cheap long-range drones and cruise missiles to strike deep into Russian territory, but these weapons are slower and easier to shoot down once detected.
Russia repeatedly uses ballistic missiles against Ukraine, which has so far struggled to intercept them, putting pressure on air defenses.
In June, Fire Point, one of Ukraine’s largest defense manufacturers tested a ballistic missile, which would in theory allow Ukraine to respond to Russia’s long-range attacks.
Fedorov, who said that Kyiv’s ballistic missile program accelerated during his time as defense minister, said he believes that Ukraine will launch a ballistic missile into Russia by the end of the year.
“We need to defeat Russia in every technological cycle, and we have to make decisions 24/7,” the 35-year-old Fedorov said, noting that while Ukraine is innovating quickly, Russia is doing the same.
Before his ouster last month, Fedorov had helped design Ukraine’s strategy seeking to bring an end to the war by turning to drones and robots to beat back a larger adversary.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy fired Fedorov in mid-July, citing an irresolvable feud between Fedorov and Zelenskyy’s top general, Oleksandr Syrskyi. The move sparked protests from thousands of people across the country.
About a week later, Zelenskyy subsequently removed Syrskyi from his post.
Asked why he believes he was fired, Fedorov told CBS News, “I really don’t want to talk to the American audience about why.”
He added: “Whatever the reason, it is important to understand that Ukraine will continue to fight.”
Fedorov was credited with turning the tide of the war in Ukraine’s favor, increasing Ukraine’s deep strikes into Russia tenfold and bolstering its domestic arsenal.
Early Saturday, Zelenskyy posted on social media that Ukraine had struck a Russian space agency facility in Samara, located about 560 miles from Ukraine’s border, with new Ukrainian-produced Flamingo missiles.
Fedorov told CBS News the protests over his removal are a sign that the Ukrainian people support democratic values and that Ukraine is fighting for its freedom.
A former tech entrepreneur, Fedorov was mum on whether a return to government was in his future.
“Soon we will see,” he said. “But in any case, all my work will be aimed at ending the war and rebuilding Ukraine.”
