White House considers providing Ukraine with another Patriot system - WSJ
Kyiv • UNN
The administration of US President Donald Trump is considering providing Ukraine with an additional Patriot anti-aircraft missile system. This decision could be the first major weapons system provided to Kyiv without prior White House approval under President Biden.
The administration of US President Donald Trump is considering providing the Ukrainian army with another Patriot anti-aircraft missile system. This is reported by The Wall Street Journal, citing statements by two defense ministry officials, UNN reports.
Details
According to sources, the White House chief began considering this after recent promises to strengthen Ukraine's defense against massive Russian shelling.
If this decision is made, the Patriot air defense system will be the first major weapons system that the Donald Trump administration will provide to Kyiv independently - without prior approval from the White House under President Joe Biden.
The White House has already asked the Pentagon to consider providing Ukraine with additional weapons, including the Patriot system, one official said. They are also currently studying whether other countries can provide the Armed Forces of Ukraine with more such systems.
According to one US official, if there is a corresponding order, such a system can be created for the Ukrainian army, but there remains uncertainty about how many interceptors the US and its allies will be able to provide. Due to hostilities in Ukraine and the Middle East, there have been supply disruptions, forcing Washington to focus on restoring its own reserves.
Recall
US President Donald Trump promised Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky to send 10 missiles for Patriot systems. At the same time, according to Axios, Trump does not want to give his Patriot batteries, so he asks Germany to sell Ukraine one of its installations.
US State Department spokeswoman Tammy Bruce stated that the US remains committed to supporting Ukraine and will continue to supply weapons. The brief pause in supplies was part of a planned review of military assistance programs.