Belfast-made missiles for Ukraine delivered five months early in boost to besieged country's air defence
Crucial Ulster-made missiles for Ukraine have been delivered five months early, Westminster has revealed.
Manufactured by a company with facilities in Belfast and Co Down, the weaponry will be used to defend the country’s airspace in its conflict with Russia.
The announcement came as Minister for Defence Readiness and Industry, Luke Pollard, led a trade delegation to Ukraine’s capital Kyiv.
The missiles are made by arms giant Thales, which has a factory in Belfast’s Castlereagh Industrial Estate as well as a testing range in Co Down. Earlier this year, the business revealed plans to open a third facility in Northern Ireland, and just this week won a £350m contract to supply the same make of weaponry to India.
Ongoing missile manufacturing work in Belfast is directly creating 200 new jobs as well as supporting a further 700 existing staff, the government stated as the early delivery was announced today.
Said Mr Pollard said: “The UK is stepping up our ironclad commitment to help Ukraine defend itself against Russia’s illegal invasion. This year alone we are spending £4.5bn on military support for Ukraine, more than ever before.
“It was an honour to lead this trade delegation to Kyiv, and to see so many other countries participating in the event. Driving industrial partnerships is essential so that we can learn from their expertise and together build the industrial base we need to defend the UK, deter our adversaries and support Ukraine.”
Deeper international collaboration between companies of all sizes is critical to Ukraine’s long-term defence industrial resilience and bolstering its efforts in the war, the government says.