The US is moving Ukraine at the top of the list to receive air defense interceptors to defend their cities against Russian missile attack. The policy decision applies to interceptors patriot and other air defense systems use to shoot down incoming missiles and drones.
“We're going to re-prioritize the deliveries of those exports, so the missiles coming off the production line will now be provided to Ukraine,” White House National Security Communications Adviser John Kirby told reporters on Thursday . “This will ensure that we will be able to provide Ukraine with the missiles they need to maintain their reserves at a key time in the war.”
The first shipments of the missiles to Ukraine will occur in the coming weeks, according to Kirby, and Ukraine will see the first deliveries before the end of the summer. He called the reprioritization a “difficult but necessary decision.”
Countries that have ordered the same missiles will still receive them but with a delay. Kirby said the focus on Ukraine's inventory will last about the next 16 months, and after that, other countries will begin receiving the missiles they ordered.
Jens Buttner/Pool via REUTERS
In Italy at the G7 summit earlier this month, President Biden in a press conference with Ukrainian President Zelenskyy said: “Everything we have will go to Ukraine until their needs are met. And then we will the commitments we made to other countries.”
Taiwan is exempt due to its urgent need to also acquire similar capabilities in the face of threats from China.
The United States donated a battery of Patriot missiles to Ukraine last year after training a small group of Ukrainians at Fort Sill in Oklahoma. on how to operate it. The US has also committed several advanced domestic surface-to-air missile systems and other older air defense systems.
The Patriot systems can intercept cruise and ballistic missiles and have a greater range of up to 100 miles than the National Advanced Surface-to-Air Missile System which has a range of 80 miles and can shoot down cruise missiles and drones.
Zelenskyy has publicly asked the US and its allies to donate seven more Patriot systems. In Italy last week, he said, “we urgently need seven Patriot systems, yes, to save our cities.”
Russia in its war against Ukraine has targeted civilian infrastructure with the apparent aim of depriving Ukrainian citizens of water, heat and electricity, especially during the winter.
The United States is not alone in providing Ukraine with air defense capabilities. Members of the Ukrainian Defense Contact Group, a coalition of about 50 countries that meet monthly to discuss how to support Ukraine, have also pledged to help with air defense. After the most recent meeting last week, Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said the Netherlands is leading an effort to bring together the various parts that make up a Patriot system and is asking other countries to contribute as well.
The political decision to speed up the missiles in Ukraine comes the same week Russian President Putin visited North Korea to sign a defense pact as he seeks more support for Russia's warring side.
