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A Patriot interceptor missile is launched during a live-fire exercise.
Credit: APFootage/Alamy Stock Photo
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy is calling for the country to be allowed to license-produce Patriot interceptors to try to stem the tide of Russian ballistic missile attacks.
Russia has been taking advantage of a shortfall in Ukrainian stocks of the missiles—as well as a slow-down in deliveries of the weapons—by increasing ballistic missile attacks against Ukraine’s cities and energy infrastructure.
Patriot deliveries to Ukraine have slowed to a trickle after hundreds of the missiles were used by the U.S. and Middle Eastern countries to defend against Iranian attacks. Washington is redirecting new-build weapons to Middle Eastern allies and the U.S. military.
Approximately 50 civilians have died in Russian missile strikes in the past week. During strikes on July 6, Russia launched nearly 30 ballistic missiles, but Ukraine was unable to down even one of them, according to figures released by the Ukrainian Air Force.
Now, Zelenskyy is calling on Washington to give the green light to enable license production of the missile in Ukraine and has urged his European neighbors to get behind such an initiative.
“We all value the Patriot system, but today’s wars have shown that current Patriot production is not enough to meet the growing demand for protection against ballistic missiles,” Zelenskyy told the NATO Summit in Ankara, Turkey.
“We have discussed Patriot production licenses with our American partners, and I ask you to support our efforts to make this happen,” he added.
Speaking alongside NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte, Zelenskyy said after his speech that securing more Patriots as quickly as possible had become an “urgent topic.”
Ballistic missiles are now Russia’s “last major advantage,” Zelenskyy said, adding that Europe now also needs to urgently develop more defenses against ballistic missiles.
Zelenskyy also made another pitch to persuade NATO allies that Ukraine should also be allowed to become a member of the alliance. Having built up significant combat experience, expertise and industrial capacity, Ukraine in NATO would be a “source of extraordinary defensive capability,” Zelenskyy told the summit. “It would make all of us stronger, and we already see each other as reliable partners. It would be only natural to become a part of one common security community.”
Meanwhile, Kyiv is continuing its strikes—which Zelenskyy calls “long-range sanctions” against Russia’s oil industry—having already successfully caused some regions to face energy shortages.
Zelenskyy claims that Kyiv has now struck every major oil refinery in Russia, including one in Siberia.
“We have completely eliminated the very idea of Russia having a strategic rear,” Zelenskyy said. “We are raising the cost of this war for Russia, and by doing so, increasing the chances of peace.“
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