Germany and UK search allied stockpiles for Patriot missiles for Ukraine
Photo: German Minister of Defense Boris Pistorius (Getty Images)
Germany and the UK are seeking additional air defense systems for Ukraine, as the US is supplying insufficient Patriot systems and missiles to Ukraine. A plan for other partners is to be prepared by the Ramstein meeting on November 17, according to a briefing by German Minister of Defense Boris Pistorius.
The German minister explained that the situation was complex, noting that few additional Patriot systems and corresponding guided missiles were coming from the US. He added that production of PAC-2 GEM-T missiles in Germany was only just beginning.
Thus, Pistorius responded to the question of whether allies could urgently transfer Patriot missiles from their stockpiles to Ukraine, as proposed by President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. According to the minister, this issue was also discussed last week in Paris at a meeting of defense ministers from five European countries.
The next meeting of the Ukraine Defense Contact Group, known as Ramstein, is scheduled to take place on November 17 in Brussels. By then, Berlin and London hope to prepare a roadmap for other partners who can assist Ukraine with air defense in the near future.
For his part, Strittenberg reported that Britain is also exploring possibilities for additional assistance and working on involving other allies.
The Ramstein meeting on November 17 at NATO headquarters in Brussels will be co-hosted by Britain and Germany. Ukraine will attend with a specific request: Minister of Defense Yevhenii Khmara has called on partners to transfer 10% of their interceptor stockpiles, including missiles for Patriot and IRIS-T systems. Ukraine is contracting these using EU credit funds.
Missiles from the US are also arriving slowly. President Volodymyr Zelenskyy stated that Ukraine has been waiting for nearly a month for the signature of Pentagon Head Pete Hegseth regarding missiles for Patriot and NASAMS. And the 500 PAC-3 missiles approved by the State Department in late October may only begin to arrive in a few years.
