European Commissioner for Defence and Space Andrius Kubilius visited Destinus in the Netherlands on 24 September for a working session with the industrial partners behind Bliksem EXO. The discussions covered Europe’s upper-layer missile-defence requirements, the programme roadmap and the cross-border cooperation needed to develop and produce a sovereign European interceptor system. “Europe’s security requires both technological innovation and industrial capacity to deliver critical capabilities quickly and reliably,” Kubilius said.

Europe’s missile-defence architecture depends on several layers working together against different classes of threat. Bliksem EXO is being developed for the upper layer, with a focus on medium- and intermediate-range ballistic missiles that require interception above the atmosphere. It is intended to complement existing and planned lower-layer air- and missile-defence systems, rather than replace them. The proposed system is designed to be interoperable with NATO Integrated Air and Missile Defence and to contribute to the European Sky Shield Initiative.

The programme brings together five European defence and aerospace companies. In July 2026, Airbus Defence and Space, Destinus, MBDA Deutschland, Safran Electronics & Defense and Thales signed a Letter of Intent to establish the Bliksem EXO Consortium, with Destinus serving as Consortium Lead and Prime under the framework announced at the time. The partners bring complementary capabilities in interceptor technology, propulsion and launch systems, guidance and sensing, battle management, radar and system integration. An effective upper-layer capability depends on all these elements working together, as well as on the capacity to manufacture, deploy and support the system over time.

“Europe needs the ability to develop and industrialise critical missile-defence capabilities on its own industrial base,” said Mikhail Kokorich, CEO of Destinus. “Bliksem EXO is built around that principle: European partners combining complementary technologies in one interoperable upper-layer system.” The July Letter of Intent outlined the partners’ intentions for development, qualification, industrial-scale production and long-term support. Kubilius’s visit gave the consortium an opportunity to present its roadmap and discuss the technical and industrial conditions needed to move the programme forward. The next challenge is to turn that industrial agreement into a qualified system that can be produced and supported at the scale Europe requires.