Trump doesn't rule out sending Patriot missiles to Ukraine
Patriot air defense systems play a key role in protecting Ukraine (Illustrative photo: Getty Images)
US President Donald Trump did not rule out that the United States would supply Ukraine with ammunition for Patriot air-defense systems, the American president said at a press conference following the NATO summit in The Hague.
"We're going to see if we can make some available. Yeah, they're very hard to get. We need them too. We're supplying them to Israel, and, they're very effective, 100% effective. Hard to believe how effective. They do want that more than any other thing," Trump emphasized.
When the journalist who asked about the Patriot missiles told the president that her husband serves in the Ukrainian Armed Forces, Trump asked her to "say hello to your husband."
At the same time, the American president did not clarify whether the transfer of missiles would be provided as military aid or sold to Ukraine with funding from European countries.
Patriot systems for Ukraine
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy recently reported that, via US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, Ukraine submitted a request for Patriot air-defense systems. This would not be a free transfer: Ukraine is prepared to purchase both the launchers and interceptors.
In April, Zelenskyy said he tasked Ukraine's Ministry of Foreign Affairs with securing US agreement to acquire Patriots. At that time, it was reported that Ukraine intended to buy $30–50 billion worth of US weapons, including up to 10 air-defense batteries and their missiles.
Patriot air-defense systems play a crucial role in protecting Ukraine from Russian attacks. They are the only surface-to-air missiles capable of intercepting the Russian Kinzhal (Kh-47M2) hypersonic missiles and effectively countering other Russian and North Korean ballistic threats. Russian state media have repeatedly claimed falsely — to have destroyed US Patriot batteries; one such claim was debunked just a few days ago.
