(Reuters) – Ukraine possesses a laser weapon capable of shooting down airborne targets at an altitude of more than 2 kilometres (1.2 miles), the country’s drone forces commander said on Monday. The military official, Vadym Sukharevskyi, did not provide any more details in his first official remarks about the existence of the weapon. Reuters was unable to verify his statement.

“Today we can already shoot down aircraft at an altitude of over 2 km with this laser,” he was quoted as saying by the Interfax-Ukraine news agency.

Sukharevskyi said the laser was named the Tryzub – the Ukrainian word for a “trident”, which is a symbol used on the national coat of arms – suggesting it was domestically produced.

In April, former British Defence Minister Grant Shapps said that Britain’s DragonFire laser, which is expected to go into service in 2027, could potentially be used in Ukraine to counter Russian drones.

(Reporting by Yuliia Dysa, editing by Ed Osmond)