Ukraine to receive US Patriot air defence systems, says Trump

US President Donald Trump said he would send weapons, including Air Defense systems, Patriot, to Ukraine via NATO.

“We will send Patriot to NATO, then NATO will distribute this,” Trump told NBC News, adding that NATO will pay the price of weapons.

His announcement came after Ukraine President Volodimir Zelinski spoke about a “positive dialogue” with Trump to ensure weapons arrive on time, especially air defense systems.

Zelinski said he had requested 10 Patriot systems, after an increase in drones and Russian missile attacks on Ukrainian cities last week.

Speaking in Rome on Thursday, the Ukrainian leader said that Germany was ready to pay the price of two patriots and Norway to one of them, while the other European partners were also ready to help.

After following a phone with Vladimir Putin last week, Trump said he was “unhappy” that the progress was not made towards ending the war, and since then he complained that Putin’s “very nice” position turned out to be meaningless.

During his interview with NBC News, Trump said he would issue a “major statement” on Russia on Monday, but he did not say what he would be.

He said, “NATO will pay the full cost of weapons sent to Ukraine. NATO is It is funded by the contributions of its membersIncluding the United States.

On Friday, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio told reporters that he urged countries including Germany and Spain to deliver some of the current Patriot batteries, where they can reach Ukraine faster.

“We have continued to encourage our NATO allies to provide these weapons … given that they are in their stocks, we can conclude financial agreements … where they can buy alternatives.”

The US Department of Defense suspended some critical arms shipments last week, which raised concerns in Kiev that its air defenses may decrease within months.

Among the reported weapons, they were placed on the Patriot Interptor and microscopic shells.

After that, since Ukraine was bombed with record numbers of drones this week, Trump said more weapons will be sent: “We have … it is very hindered now.”

Zelinski appealed to resume shipments, and described Patriot’s systems as “a true protector of life.”

On Tuesday night, Ukraine was 728 drone, and the Ukrainian president warned that Russia wanted to increase this to 1000.

June witnessed the highest monthly civil losses in Ukraine three years ago, killing 232 people and more than 1,300 people, according to the United Nations.

Patriot air defense batteries, and the intersection missiles they launch, play an important role in defending Ukrainian cities, and civil and military infrastructure, from Russian and ballistic electoral attacks.

In addition to the surface S-300 missiles from the Soviet and nose from the West (the advanced missile system to the air), the patriots help Ukraine to maintain what the army calls “defense classes”.

Through its advanced radar, tracking and high objection rate, the patriot is considered one of the best air defense systems in the world.

Without this, Ukraine will fight to protect itself from the uncompromising bombing of Moscow.

But it is also expensive in general, with one battery, including missiles, at a value of about one billion dollars (740 million pounds). This helps in clarifying the reason for the Western countries that run the regulations of patriots in secession.

Ukrainian forces already know how to use it.

The first two western batteries arrived in April 2023, after months of pleading from Kyiv. The exact number of systems currently used is a secret deprived.

But each additional battery allows Ukraine to place more cities and major facilities, including military bases and power stations, under the umbrella of the regime protection.

Ukraine is a huge country. You will not be able to protect everything – or everyone. But with the increase in Russian air attacks on frequency and size, it appears that the Western Kiev allies are aware of the urgency.

Since the White House was re -in January, Trump has pushed to expand US support to Ukraine.

The United States was the largest source of military aid to Ukraine between the beginning of 2022 and the end of 2024, with $ 69 billion (54.6 billion pounds) was given in that time period, According to the German thought reservoir, the Kiel Institute.

Trump also pressed NATO allies to pledge more than GDP of the security alliance. Last year, all European NATO members pledged to spend 2 % of GDP to defense.

Russia launched a widespread invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. The United States urges the two countries to reach an agreement to end the war.

Rubio told the correspondents that he and Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov held a “frank” conversation on the sidelines of a meeting in Malaysia on Thursday.

“Trump’s frustration with the lack of progress in peace talks”, including “disappointment that there was no more flexibility on the Russian side to end this conflict.”

He said that the two have shared some new ideas on how the conflict ended, which will return to Trump.

Rubio refused to clarify what Trump said would be a “major” declaration of Russia on Monday.