Donald Trump has approved the sale of hundreds of Patriot missiles to Ukraine, although the systems may not be delivered until as late as 2032.
The US president authorised the sale of 500 mobile surface-to-air missile interceptors after Volodymyr Zelensky repeatedly appealed to Western leaders to accelerate deliveries of the crucial air-defence weapons.
However, Ukraine’s president warned that it could be years before the Patriot missiles arrive, despite his being “very persistent” in urging Mr Trump to provide additional systems.
The US State Department said the proposed deal for advanced PAC-3 interceptor missiles is valued at $2.1 billion (£1.6 billion). The cost, it said, would be “funded entirely” by Canada and European countries.
Mr Zelensky welcomed what he called a “strong decision” and said he was “grateful”, but warned that the agreement “stipulates deliveries may begin only in a few years”.
He said he had asked Washington for a “winter support package” of 100 Patriot interceptors each month as Russian strikes against Ukraine’s energy infrastructure continue “every single day”. He added that 500 missiles “would be enough to protect our skies”.
But the Ukrainian president said Kyiv needed decisions capable of protecting lives immediately, rather than “the day after tomorrow or sometime later”. He added: “We are asking for decisions that can guarantee the protection of lives not the day after tomorrow or sometime later, but at the very moment the threat is there – when Russia is killing and destroying.”
Mr Zelensky suggested that the US and its European allies could transfer Patriot missiles already held in their stockpiles, with the new purchase later used to replenish those supplies.
Donald Trump has responded to Volodymyr Zelensky’s appeals by approving the sale of 500 Patriot missiles to Ukraine
Patriot systems can detect, track and engage unmanned aircraft, cruise missiles, as well as short-range and tactical ballistic missiles
Patriot missiles are among Ukraine’s most important weapons for intercepting Russian drones and missile attacks.
Washington’s approval, which will now go to Congress for review, follows weeks of warnings from Ukrainian officials that their stocks of Patriot interceptors were running low.
Earlier this month, Mr Zelensky urged European nations to “unblock” Patriot deliveries. He said allies “need to continue supporting Ukrainian combat aviation to defend against jet-powered ‘shaheds’ [Russian drones]”.
The US State Department said the proposed sale would “improve Ukraine’s capability to meet current and future threats by improving its integrated air and missile defense capabilities”.
US officials did not give an estimated delivery date for the weapons.
The State Department added: “This proposed sale will support the foreign policy and national security objectives of the United States by improving the security of a partner country that is a force for political and economic stability in Europe.”
Tensions between the US and Ukraine intensified earlier this month after Washington agreed a diesel fuel deal with Russia.
Ukraine also accused the US of restricting its access to satellite internet services and suspending some intelligence-sharing arrangements.
Relations improved after Mr Zelensky met US envoys for talks in Oslo on October 20.
The State Department said the Patriot missile sale would be financed through donations from Ukraine’s allies rather than US government funds.
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The $2.1billion deal would be one of the most significant steps to supply defensive weapons to Kyiv since the start of the second Trump administration.
Delayed missile deliveries have added to Ukraine’s tensions with the US after Mr Trump announced a diesel deal with Russia and Mr Zelensky criticised Ukraine’s 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.
The Patriot missile system is the most effective weapon to counter fast-moving ballistic missiles.
On Thursday, a Russian drone strike killed at least 14 people on a crowded rail platform in the Ukrainian city of Dnipro, while five died in daytime strikes on two other provincial cities and a late-evening missile strike killed one person in Kyiv.
Mr Zelensky said on Monday that Ukraine had been waiting for almost a month for the US to sign off on critical missile supplies, as Russia stepped up attacks on energy and civilian infrastructure.
A US soldier conducts maintenance on an MIM-104 Patriot missile system, the army’s primary terminal-phase anti-ballistic missile system, at an undisclosed location in the Middle East
The deal comes after Volodymyr Zelensky pleaded with allies to supply Ukraine with more Patriot missiles, which are vital to Ukraine’s defence
But despite Ukraine’s urgency, it will likely not receive the missile interceptors quickly.
Weapons sales typically take years to fulfill, and two people briefed on the US decision said the missiles – which are yet to be manufactured – are not expected to be delivered until a couple of years into the 2030s.
One of the people said Ukraine’s Ministry of Defense is encouraging the Pentagon to bring forward the delivery date, possibly by giving Kyiv missiles already in the US arsenal and backfilling with the new Patriot interceptors.
Ukraine will pay for the missiles with contributions from Canada, Germany and Norway routed through a programme called US JUMPSTART, along with national funds financed by the European Union’s Ukraine Support Loan, the State Department said in a statement.
The programme uses donations from allies to buy weapons, services and training for Ukraine to support its self-defense following Russia’s invasion, according to a Pentagon website.
The JUMPSTART programme was used in August to buy 3,350 air-launched cruise missiles worth $825million (£615.8million) made by Zone 5 Technologies and CoAspire.
Lockheed Martin is the principal contractor for the sale of the Patriot interceptors.
The US has supplied large quantities of weapons to allies while also using munitions in its own military operations in Iran, raising concerns about inventories of key air defense and precision-guided weapons.
In July, the US Army awarded Lockheed a contract worth up to $58.6billion (£43.7billion) to produce Patriot interceptor missiles.
Lockheed has said that deal would allow it to follow through on a promise to triple PAC-3 MSE production capacity by the end of 2030 and increase jobs at its Camden, Arkansas, plant by 50 per cent, to about 1,850 from 1,200.
Lockheed previously announced Patriot PAC-3 missile interceptor production would go to 2,000 units annually.
Pentagon negotiators are pressing contractors to move much faster, with tentative production agreements struck earlier this year at the centre of efforts to increase missile output.