Zelenskyy urged European countries to 'lend' Patriot systems to Ukraine
Photo: President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy (Getty Images)
President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, speaking at a meeting of the Coalition of the Willing called on European partners to provide Ukraine with Patriot air defense systems. He said Kyiv would return them immediately after receiving new ones from the United States, according to the press service of the Office of the President.
According to Zelenskyy, Ukraine is currently discussing an agreement with Washington to purchase the required number of Patriot systems, but deliveries may not happen right away.
One of the reasons, he said, is that several European countries are already in line to purchase these air defense systems.
Despite this, Zelenskyy noted that European partners already possess a significant number of Patriot and other air defense systems.
He added that these systems in Europe "fortunately, are just standing by in standby mode."
"We could use them now to protect lives so that we don’t have to wait for our turn. It would help us greatly if we could receive these systems from Europe now and then replace them later when it’s our turn under the agreement with the Americans," Zelenskyy said.
The president also called on every country that has these systems to approach the issue "practically."
Earlier, Zelenskyy stated that Ukraine could receive new Patriot systems faster if European countries allowed Kyiv to move ahead in the US delivery queue.
Head of the President's Office Andrii Yermak recently saidy that US President Donald Trump had "given the green light" to supplying Patriot systems to Ukraine.
Patriot air defense system
The Patriot is a mobile long- and medium-range surface-to-air missile system designed to defend against aircraft, cruise missiles, and tactical ballistic missiles.
Its advantages include high efficiency against a wide range of threats, integration into networked air defense systems, and mobility, which allows for rapid deployment.
However, the system and its interceptor missiles are very expensive.
The Patriot is in service with the United States and many of its allies.
