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Brendan Cole
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With Europe alarmed about Russian unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) entering its airspace, a Swedish firm has said its interception device can help protect the eastern flank of NATO, and the wider region, as the alliance mulls a drone wall to counter Moscow’s hybrid threats.
Nordic Air Defence (NAD) has touted the Kreuger 100XR as a high-speed kinetic interceptor that can safeguard key infrastructure from the increasing number of unarmed drones Moscow is accused of sending to buzz around airports, military bases and power plants.
Former Swedish Foreign Minister Tobias Billström, Stockholm’s top diplomat at the time Vladimir Putin invaded Ukraine and now NAD director of strategy and government affairs, told Newsweek that anti-drone capabilities are essential for Europe to increase its buffer against future Russian threats.
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“It's quite clear that the EU has a responsibility to scale up," Billström said.
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Why It Matters
Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine has highlighted how drones are an integral part of warfare. Away from the battlefield, they are also tools of belligerence, with Moscow implicated in drones seen flying over key infrastructure in Poland, Belgium and Denmark.
The exposure of the alliance’s vulnerabilities has focused minds on building a “drone wall” for Europe to create a layered defense across NATO's eastern border
NAD said that while the idea of a drone wall is still vague in technical terms, its drone interceptors can help protect the alliance’s eastern flank at a low cost.
What To Know
The Kreuger 100XR is a battery-powered, high-speed kinetic interceptor with an optional warhead. Featuring a fixed-wing design, it has an intercept range of more than three miles, according to NAD. The device has an integrated thermal infrared seeker and can be launched from the ground, handheld units, vehicles, boats, and airborne systems.
NAD said that by cutting out much of the hardware used in previous drone interceptors, and replacing it with software, the Kreuger 100XR is 10 times cheaper to produce per unit than conventional anti-drone technology, such as interceptors or missiles, meaning that arsenals can be scaled up through mass manufacturing.
The company expects that its technology can be used as a defense against the Shahed-136 and the Geran 2 drones Moscow uses to target Ukrainian infrastructure.
This image, provided by Nordic Air Defence, shows the Kreuger 100XR drone interceptor.
Billström said the conflict in Ukraine had produced a technological leap forward and that anti-drone capacity will now be an element in any kind of modern warfare.
He said that anti-drone capacity to protect both military and civilian targets is needed to counter military and hybrid threats. Regardless of the outcome of the war, there would be a need for a policy of containing Russia, which would require an increase in the defense capabilities of both the European Union and NATO, he added.
But countering drones with cruise missiles is not going to be an affordable or sustainable solution for the future, he said. “You have to find other countermeasures. And those countermeasures are interceptors.”
What People Are Saying
Former Swedish Foreign Minister Tobias Billström, Nordic Air Defense director of strategy and government affairs: "Regardless of the outcome of this war, there would be a need for a policy of containment towards Russia. On the top of the to-do list is the increase in the defense capabilities of both the EU and of NATO and it is in this gap that you will find the anti-drone capabilities coming to come into place."
Nordic Air Defense business director Jens Holzapfel: "With the caveat that the policy initiative of a 'drone wall' still is a bit vague in technical terms, NAD certainly hopes to provide its solution to it, and to protect NATO's Eastern flank against drones. Hence, we hope that our K100XR will be deployed among the militaries, law enforcement and border protection agencies that are part of the drone wall."
What Happens Next
NATO's drone wall is likely to comprise a combination of radars, sensors, jamming and weapons systems to detect incoming drones. While EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas has said a new anti-drone system should be fully operational by the end of 2027, although many details still need to be clarified.
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