Zelenskyy seeks Patriot systems from United States

Kyiv: Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said on Monday he wants to order 25 Patriot air defence systems from the United States, as Ukraine desperately tries to fend off relentless Russian aerial attacks that have brought rolling blackouts across Ukraine on the brink of winter.

Zelenskyy acknowledged that the Patriot systems are expensive and that such a large batch could take years to manufacture. But he said European countries could give their Patriots to Ukraine and await replacements, stressing that “we would not like to wait.”

Combined missile and drone strikes on the power grid have coincided with Ukraine’s frantic efforts to hold back a Russian battlefield push aimed at capturing the eastern stronghold of Pokrovsk. Meanwhile, international peace efforts appear to have dissipated, nearly four years after Russia invaded its neighbour.

Zelenskyy said Ukraine recently received more Patriot systems from Germany. It is not known how many Patriot systems are in Ukraine. Air defences remain stretched thin across wide expanses of Ukrainian territory.