The United States says it has approved the possible sale of 500 Patriot PAC-3 missiles to Ukraine for an estimated $2.1bn.
The package of missiles, parts and support, announced on Friday by the US State Department, would be one of the most significant steps to supply defensive weapons to Kyiv since the start of the second administration of President Donald Trump in January 2025.
The Patriot system is the most effective weapon to counter fast-moving ballistic missiles.
Delayed missile deliveries, however, have stoked US-Ukraine tensions after Trump announced a diesel deal with Russia and criticised Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy for his unwillingness to stop attacks on Russian refineries.
Ukraine has long said it urgently needs more missile interceptors to knock down the growing waves of missiles Russia’s military fires at the country.
Zelenskyy said on Monday that Kyiv had been waiting for almost a month for Washington to sign off on critical missile supplies, as Russia stepped up its attacks on Ukrainian energy and civilian infrastructure.
A Russian drone strike on Thursday killed at least 14 people on a crowded rail platform in the Ukrainian city of Dnipro.
Five people were killed in daytime strikes on two other cities, and a late-evening missile strike killed one person in the capital, Kyiv, officials said.
Despite Ukraine’s need for quick deliveries of the missiles, Kyiv is unlikely to receive the Patriot interceptors soon. Weapons sales typically take years to fulfil.
Two people briefed on the US decision said the missiles, which have yet to be made, are not expected to be delivered until a couple of years into the 2030s.
Ukraine will pay for the missiles with contributions from Canada, Germany and Norway through a programme called US JUMPSTART, along with national funds financed by the European Union’s Ukraine Support Loan, the State Department said in its statement.
US weapons manufacturer Lockheed Martin is the principal contractor for the sale of the Patriot interceptors.
The US Army awarded Lockheed a contract worth up to $58.6bn to produce Patriot interceptor missiles in July.
Lockheed has said the deal would allow it to follow through on a promise to triple PAC-3 production capacity by the end of 2030. It has previously announced that Patriot PAC-3 missile interceptor production would reach 2,000 units annually.
Pentagon negotiators are pressing weapons contractors to speed up production.
The US military’s supply of large quantities of weapons to allies and its own heavy munitions use for its operations in Iran have raised concerns about its inventories of key air defence and precision-guided weapons.
