Trump subtly backs Patriot missile production in Ukraine
Donald Trump, President of the US (photo: Getty Images)
US President Donald Trump shared a publication by The Washington Post, in which the author proposes a solution to the shortage of such missiles for Ukrainian air defense. One of the ideas is the production of Patriot missiles in Ukraine, according to Trump’s post on Truth Social and the WP article.
The author of the material believes that licensing production could simultaneously help Ukraine, US allies, and the US itself. The publication notes that the US is currently forced to balance between Ukraine's need for Patriot missiles, the necessity of replenishing its own stocks, and other military needs.
According to the article's author, Marc Thiessen, one obvious solution is to grant Ukraine a license to produce its own interceptors. Trump had already stated his readiness to allow Ukraine to manufacture Patriots during the NATO summit in Ankara in July, Thiessen recalls in his publication.
However, as the author writes, there has been no practical progress on this issue since then. One of the main obstacles cited is concern over the transfer of advanced American technologies.
What option do the US propose?
Thiessen points out that Ukraine does not necessarily need access to the most modern version of Patriot - the PAC-3 Missile Segment Enhancement.
Transferring relevant technologies to Ukraine, in the author's opinion, creates a risk of them falling into Russian hands.
Trump reposted an article about licensing Patriot missiles for Ukraine (photo: Screenshot)
Therefore, The Washington Post suggests considering joint production of less technologically advanced interceptor variants.
One option is the PAC-3 Adapted Capability Effector (PAC-3 ACE), a new, cheaper interceptor from Lockheed Martin. According to the author, it provides about 70% of the accuracy of the more modern version while costing less than half its price.
Another option mentioned is the older PAC-2 GEM-T missile produced by Raytheon. A contract has already been concluded for Ukraine to produce such missiles at a new facility in Germany.
Ukraine needs missiles now
At the same time, the author of the publication notes that even permission to produce will not solve Ukraine's urgent problem. Deploying production will take time, while the need for interceptors exists right now.
As one temporary solution, Thiessen proposes that the United States pressure South Korea to transfer its own M-SAM II missiles to Ukraine, which he calls the Korean Patriot.
At the same time, the author believes that under a potential licensing agreement, Ukraine could transfer part of the produced interceptors to NATO countries to replenish their stocks. In his opinion, this would partially reduce the burden on American production.
Thus, the publication shared by Trump proposes not just transferring more ready-made Patriot missiles to Ukraine, but considering the possibility of involving the Ukrainian defense industry in their production.
It seems Trump liked this idea, given that he shared it on his social network.
Context of the material
Despite Trump not rushing to facilitate the start of Patriot missile production, Congress insists that Washington and the Pentagon must act as quickly as possible. US House of Representatives member Mike Turner called on the president and the Pentagon to move as fast as possible so that Ukraine can defend itself.
During a meeting with Zelenskyy in Washington in late July, Trump stated his readiness to allow Ukraine to produce Patriot interceptor missiles under license.
However, just a few days later at a government meeting in Camp David, he stated that there was no final agreement and that the US must be very careful about transferring the secrets of this weapon.
