Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy urged Kyiv's allies on Thursday (September 11) to rethink their own air defence capabilities after incursions into Polish airspace by drones that Warsaw said were Russian.

Speaking in Kyiv beside visiting Finnish President Alexander Stubb, Zelenskiy said Ukraine was "open and ready" to provide support for its allies' efforts.

Ukraine has fended off many airstrikes since Russia began its war on its neighbour, using an array of Ukrainian and foreign-supplied weapons ranging from old machine guns to advanced missiles.

Zelenskiy said countries such as Poland should explore similar multi-layered approaches as missile systems such as the U.S.-made Patriot were too expensive to use against cheaper drones used by Russia.

"No one in the world has enough missiles to shoot down all different types of drones," Zelenskiy said.

With backing from its NATO allies on Wednesday, Poland shot down several drones that entered its airspace in what the Polish president said was a provocation by Russia intended to test the response from Poland and NATO.

Zelenskiy said that Ukraine, which is heavily dependent on Western long-range air defence systems but has developed a sophisticated domestic approach to repel Russian attacks, was in a position to provide guidance to its allies on such matters.

He said Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk had already agreed to send military representatives to Ukraine on the issue.

The Polish military representatives will undergo training on shooting down drones, a source familiar with the matter said on Thursday.

DESCRIPCIÓN DE IMÁGENES

KYIV, UKRAINE (SEPTEMBER 11, 2025) (REUTERS – Access all)

1. UKRAINE’S PRESIDENT VOLODYMYR ZELENSKIY MEETING FINLAND’S PRESIDENT ALEXANDER STUBB

2. ZELENSKIY AND STUBB ENTERING ROOM

3. (SOUNDBITE) (Ukrainian) UKRAINIAN PRESIDENT VOLODYMYR ZELENSKIY, SAYING:

“We offered our help because the Patriots will not help Poland in the fight against the Shaheds. And they will not help anyone. This is purely a weapon against ballistic missiles, first of all. Today, the USA, the world's leading producer of these missiles, produces 50-60 missiles per month. When we are taking down 500-800 Shaheds per day, it is clear that the Patriots are not designed to take down drones. Patriot missile costs 2-3 million (USD), drone, Shahed or Geran costs up to 100 thousand dollars. That is, they (Patriot systems) are not designed to fight drones.”

4. ZELENSKIY AND STUBB DURING JOINT NEWS CONFERENCE

5. (SOUNDBITE) (Ukrainian) UKRAINIAN PRESIDENT VOLODYMYR ZELENSKIY, SAYING:

“European friends and no one in the world has enough missiles to shoot down all different types of drones. A missile that costs a million, no matter how (effective) it is, simply cannot shoot down drones that cost tens of thousands of dollars. Even if it is 100 thousand dollars. This is simply impossible.”

6. ZELENSKIY AND STUBB DURING JOINT NEWS CONFERENCE

7. (SOUNDBITE) (Ukrainian) UKRAINIAN PRESIDENT VOLODYMYR ZELENSKIY, SAYING:

“I believe that no one has such a system today. Only we have it and the Russians have it. Accordingly, we are open and ready. Donald (Tusk) said he would send his military, whoever is needed. I put them in touch with our Minister of Defense, with Commander (Oleksandr) Syrskyi. Commander Syrskyi is in touch with the commander of Poland today. So, the next steps are technical.”

8. ZELENSKIY AND STUBB DURING JOINT NEWS CONFERENCE

9. (SOUNDBITE) (Ukrainian) UKRAINIAN PRESIDENT VOLODYMYR ZELENSKIY, SAYING:

“First of all, Russia wanted to find out – what will happen? What are the partners ready for? And what is NATO ready for? Politically, what are the partners ready for? Then they (Russians) looked - what are they (NATO) ready physically? Are the partners ready for such an attack?”

10. ZELENSKIY AND STUBB DURING JOINT NEWS CONFERENCE

11. (SOUNDBITE) (Ukrainian) UKRAINIAN PRESIDENT VOLODYMYR ZELENSKIY, SAYING:

“In my opinion, they (Russians) could also have done this, so that the partners would not transfer the air defence systems to Ukraine before winter. Demonstrating that they can attack Europe, they also need it. It sounds very similar to Putin.”

12. ZELENSKIY AND STUBB DURING JOINT NEWS CONFERENCE

13. (SOUNDBITE) (English) FINLAND’S PRESIDENT ALEXANDER STUBB, SAYING:

“So what we saw yesterday will have a wider impact on Europe. Russian drones violated Poland's territorial integrity in a way that we have not yet seen during Russia's war of aggression here in Ukraine.”

14. ZELENSKIY AND STUBB DURING JOINT NEWS CONFERENCE

15. (SOUNDBITE) (English) FINLAND’S PRESIDENT ALEXANDER STUBB, SAYING:

“It is now clear that Ukraine has security guarantees from Europe, and I think this just shows the unity of the West.”

16. ZELENSKIY AND STUBB SHAKING HANDS, HUGGING, LEAVING