• Minister Luke Pollard declined to commit Ukraine to a role in the DragonFire laser programme, saying the Ministry of Defence is focused on maturing sovereign directed energy technology.
  • He said the UK will work with key allies and keep looking for areas where defence cooperation with Ukraine can bring mutual benefit.
  • The UK Defence Journal reports DragonFire is being accelerated towards a Royal Navy Type 45 fitting, moving the in-service date from 2032 to the late 2020s.