KYIV: President Volodymyr Zelensky urged US President Donald Trump to help Ukraine with air defense systems and interceptors as Russia threatens new strikes, saying that ballistic missiles remain Moscow’s “last major advantage on the battlefield.”
In a letter to Trump and the US Congress, seen by Reuters, Zelensky said: “I ask for your help in protecting Ukraine’s skies from Russian missiles. We have already proposed that Ukraine is ready to purchase the number of Patriot systems and interceptor missiles we need.”
Ukraine’s only means to shoot down Russian ballistic missiles is US-made interceptors for the Patriot air defense system. Throughout four years of war, Kyiv has been short of interceptors, but the Iran war has threatened to make resources even more scarce.
Since Trump took office, Ukraine has been purchasing Patriot missiles through NATO’s Prioritised Ukraine Requirements List (PURL) initiative, financed by its European allies.
“But the current pace of deliveries through the PURL program is no longer keeping up with the reality of the threat we face,” Zelensky said in his letter.
