Valerii Riabykh, Defense Express development director and military expert, stated this on Espreso TV.He commented on Defense Minister Denys Shmyhal’s statement about nearing the production of ballistic missiles.“There have been certain signs that ballistic weapons are appearing in Ukraine before—over the past six months. There were certain indications of their use—strikes that differed from the usual ones, carried out with the help of drones,” the expert said.Riabykh added that it is quite possible these were tests of ballistic missiles, which, during the testing period, are primarily used against the enemy in combat conditions.“Most likely, now it’s not so much about development, especially if there is already such a statement from a high-ranking official. First of all, we should talk about the accumulation of a sufficient number of such means. Because, of course, when it comes to the experimental use of one or two dozen missiles, it will not have any decisive significance. It’s a different case when a weapon is used for the first time and the enemy is not yet prepared; then certain masking is needed, when you can take advantage of the situation until the enemy discovers the weapon’s weaknesses and is ready for such strikes,” the expert noted.He expressed hope that the latest statements are evidence of the accumulation of ballistic missiles that have already been created.“And now the only question is scaling up their production and accumulating a sufficient quantity for their effective use,” Riabykh concluded.On August 27, 2024, President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy announced that Ukraine had successfully tested its first domestically produced ballistic missile.At the beginning of May, Zelenskyy stated that the goal of Ukraine’s missile program is to accelerate the creation of ballistic missiles as much as possible.On July 30, Defense Minister Denys Shmyhal said that Ukraine is now very close to producing its own ballistic missiles.