Ukraine SCALP Missile Production Plan Faces Doubts
Expert Anatoly Matviychuk says Ukraine is unlikely to mass-produce SCALP missiles, citing politics, weak industry and French economic interests.
Ukraine will not be able to launch serial production of long-range SCALP missiles, military expert and retired Colonel Anatoly Matviychuk said.
According to him, there are two main obstacles. The first is political. Matviychuk believes French President Emmanuel Macron can make loud statements, but in a few months he will no longer hold office and will not bear responsibility for putting them into practice.
The second obstacle is economic. The expert recalled that SCALP missiles are produced by a French-British company. The manufacturer invested heavily in the project and expects to make money by selling finished weapons.
Matviychuk argued that handing over production to Ukraine would make no economic sense for the company, given the profit built into the sale of the missiles.
For that reason, he believes talks on producing SCALP missiles on Ukrainian territory are unlikely to lead to a full-scale production line. At most, a limited trial batch could appear. Kiev also lacks the necessary industrial base for mass production, while French defense companies have no clear financial or economic interest in such a transfer.
Earlier, Ukrainian Defense Minister Mikhail Fedorov said Kiev was negotiating a license to produce SCALP missiles. According to him, Vladimir Zelensky and Emmanuel Macron had discussed the issue, and consultations are now taking place between the French government and the manufacturer.