Ukraine is responding to Russia asymmetrically and is preparing to manufacture its own missiles for Patriot system, - Khmara
Acting Defence Minister Yevhen Khmara stated that Ukraine is employing an asymmetric response to Russian attacks, is focusing on strikes against Russian military infrastructure, and regards the production of interceptor missiles for the Patriot system as a priority.
According to Censor.NET, Yevhen Khmara, in a conversation with the American journalist Laura Loomer, explained the rationale behind Ukraine’s response to Russia’s massive strikes on civilian infrastructure.
We cannot respond to an attack with an attack. We must act asymmetrically.
According to him, whilst Russia is targeting civilian infrastructure — petrol stations, energy facilities and public buildings — in order to terrorise the civilian population, Ukraine is deliberately choosing different targets.
He emphasised that Russia is keen to terrorise civilians, whilst Ukraine is keen to protect its people. Ukrainian strikes are targeting the aggressor’s military-industrial complex: oil refineries, transport hubs and other elements that fuel its war.
An asymmetric approach, explained Yevhen Khmara, means first and foremost cost-effectiveness: the aim is for the cost of Ukrainian operations to amount to approximately 2 per cent of the damage inflicted on Russia. This principle underpinned Operation ‘Spider’s Web’ — a drone attack on the Russian Federation’s strategic bomber fleet, carried out by a unit previously commanded by Major-General Yevhen Khmara.
According to him, experience in operational planning determines the approach to logistics and the supply of troops.
"I have a clear picture in my mind of what is currently being used, what can be deployed against the enemy, and what might prove most effective going forward," said Khmara.
He emphasised that today’s priorities include protecting supply routes from Russian drones and ensuring that units are supplied with resources in a timely manner.
His experience of serving in a special forces unit also helped to forge a bond of trust between the Acting Minister and the military: both sides operate according to shared rules and rely on one another. This is also the principle that Yevhen Khmara continues to uphold today: never to ask a subordinate to do something that he himself is not prepared to do.
The acting Minister of Defence described the establishment of domestic production of Patriot interceptor missiles as a critical priority for defence against Russian ballistic missile strikes. According to him, once this objective has been achieved, Ukraine will be able to provide the US with additional resources for future joint operations.
