Not before the end of June: Media reports when Germany will be able to hand over Patriot to Ukraine
Kyiv • UNN
The new Patriot air defense system from Germany is expected to arrive in Ukraine no earlier than the end of June, which may coincide with the delivery of F-16 fighter jets that Ukraine has long been requesting.
The new Patriot system from Germany will arrive in Ukraine no earlier than the end of June, reports UNN with reference to The New York Times.
The new Patriot system is expected to arrive in Ukraine no earlier than the end of June. Its delivery could coincide with the delivery of another major weapon system that Ukraine has long requested: F-16 fighter jets. Although Ukraine has been requesting the warplanes almost since the start of the war in February 2022, they are not expected to be delivered until this summer - and only in small numbers at first
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The publication adds that as Ukraine struggles to hold the territory, U.S. officials believe Russia will continue to attack and exploit the advantages it currently has until Western reinforcements arrive.
"I don't think the Russians intend to make a big push now, but they have made tactical gains in a few places and are probably in a hurry to use them before the influx of upgraded munitions reaches the front to make a difference," said Ralph F. Goff, a former senior C.I.A. official who served in Eastern Europe and the former Soviet Union and who recently visited Ukraine.
He warned that Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu's threats last week to intensify attacks on logistics centers and Western weapons caches in Ukraine should be taken seriously.
This week, soldiers from several Ukrainian brigades on the front lines expressed great relief that more Western weapons were on the way, but said they had yet to see vital artillery shells and other equipment needed for day-to-day fighting.
The publication adds that Western leaders and defense officials almost unanimously agree that Ukraine is facing a particularly difficult moment - visible even in the grim arch of a two-year war - that requires urgent arms supplies.
