US approves sale of 500 Patriot missiles to Ukraine

The administration of US President Donald Trump on Friday green-lit the sale of 500 Patriot missiles to Ukraine, the US Department of State said, but Ukraine’s president warned deliveries could take years.

The approval, which goes to the US Congress for review, comes after weeks of complaints by Ukrainian authorities that its supplies of the interceptor missiles were dwindling.

“The proposed sale will improve Ukraine’s capability to meet current and future threats by improving its integrated air and missile defense capabilities,” the department said in a statement.

US President Donald Trump, right, and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy shake hands during a news conference after a lunch meeting at Trump’s Mar-a-Lago club in Palm Beach, Florida, on Dec. 28 last year.

Photo: Reuters

The statement did not provide an estimate for when the weapons could be delivered to Ukraine.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy in a post on X wrote that “deliveries may begin ONLY IN A FEW YEARS.”

“We are asking our American partners to find a solution for the time when there is a real danger and a real need to use PAC-3 interceptors,” Zelenskiy wrote, using an acronym for the weapons.

He suggested that the US and European allies could give his country missiles they have stockpiled now, which would later be replenished by this new purchase.

Patriot missiles are among the most important weapons Ukraine has to intercept Russian drones and missiles.

“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,” the US said.