US greenlights $2.1bn Patriot missile sale to Ukraine

Deal would be one of the most significant steps to supply defensive weapons to Kyiv since ​Trump took office in 2025.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy visits a military training area to find out about the training of Ukrainian soldiers on the Patriot missile system at an undisclosed location in Germany on June 11, 2024 [Jens Buttner/Reuters]

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.

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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.

这项协议将是自特朗普2025年上任以来向基辅提供防御性武器的最重要举措之一。

2024年6月11日，乌克兰总统泽连斯基视察了德国一处未公开地点的军事训练区，了解乌克兰士兵使用“爱国者”导弹系统进行训练的情况。[Jens Buttner/路透社]

美国表示已批准向乌克兰出售 500 枚爱国者 PAC-3 导弹，预计价值 21 亿美元。

美国国务院周五宣布的这批导弹、零部件和支持物资，将是自唐纳德·特朗普总统第二任期于 2025 年 1 月开始以来，向基辅提供防御性武器的最重要举措之一。

列表 1/3：俄罗斯在欧洲涉嫌的破坏活动引发了人们对局势升级的担忧

奥列什基撤离人员名单之二（共三人）在停火协议生效期间前往俄罗斯

乌克兰加大火力投入，给俄罗斯造成新的伤亡记录（共3条，此为第3条）。

爱国者导弹系统是对抗高速弹道导弹最有效的武器。

然而，导弹交付的延迟加剧了美乌之间的紧张关系。此前，特朗普宣布与俄罗斯达成柴油协议，并批评乌克兰总统泽连斯基不愿停止对俄罗斯炼油厂的袭击。

乌克兰长期以来一直表示，它迫切需要更多的导弹拦截器来击落俄罗斯军方向该国发射的日益增多的导弹。

泽连斯基周一表示，基辅方面已经等待华盛顿批准关键导弹供应近一个月了，与此同时，俄罗斯加大了对乌克兰能源和民用基础设施的攻击力度。

周四，俄罗斯无人机袭击乌克兰第聂伯罗市一个拥挤的火车站台，造成至少 14 人死亡。

官员称，白天对另外两座城市的袭击造成五人死亡，深夜导弹袭击导致首都基辅一人死亡。

尽管乌克兰急需导弹，但基辅不太可能很快收到“爱国者”拦截导弹。武器销售通常需要数年时间才能完成。

两名了解美国决定的人士表示，这些导弹尚未制造，预计要到 2030 年代初期的几年后才能交付。

美国国务院在声明中表示，乌克兰将通过一项名为“美国跃升计划”（US JUMPSTART）的项目，利用加拿大、德国和挪威的捐款，以及欧盟“乌克兰支持贷款”提供的国家资金来支付导弹费用。

美国武器制造商洛克希德·马丁公司是“爱国者”拦截导弹销售的主要承包商。

今年7月，美国陆军授予洛克希德公司一份价值高达586亿美元的合同，用于生产爱国者拦截导弹。

洛克希德公司表示，这项协议将使其能够履行承诺，在2030年底前将PAC-3导弹的产能提高两倍。该公司此前已宣布，爱国者PAC-3导弹拦截器的年产量将达到2000枚。

五角大楼谈判代表正在敦促武器承包商加快生产速度。

美国军方向盟友提供大量武器，以及其自身在伊朗行动中使用的重型弹药，引发了人们对其关键防空和精确制导武器库存的担忧。