The US State Department has approved a possible sale of 500 Patriot PAC-3 missiles to Ukraine, estimated at $2.1 billion. The department said in a Friday statement that the sale would improve Ukraine's integrated air and missile defense capabilities. It did not give a delivery estimate.
Volodymyr Zelenskyy praised the decision as strong but said in a post on X that deliveries may begin only in a few years. He asked American partners to find a faster solution. "Right now, the Russians are attacking our energy infrastructure every single day," he wrote.
Zelenskyy said US and European allies have enough Patriot stockpiles to supply Ukraine now. He said those stocks could be replenished later through contracts that Ukraine and its partners have already paid for. He called this approach "entirely feasible."
Two people briefed on the US decision said the missiles have not yet been manufactured. They said delivery is not expected until a couple of years into the 2030s. One of them said Ukraine's Ministry of Defense is asking the Pentagon to move up the date, possibly by providing missiles already in the US arsenal and replacing them with new interceptors later.
The State Department said Ukraine will pay through contributions from Canada, Germany and Norway, routed through the US Jumpstart program. National funds financed by the EU's Ukraine Support Loan will also be used. Lockheed Martin is the principal contractor.