The US cannot produce Patriots fast enough, Zelenskyy says
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy urged Europe on Tuesday to rapidly develop and mass-produce its own anti-ballistic missile defence systems, warning that current production of US-made Patriot air defence systems is insufficient to meet growing demand.
Speaking at the NATO Summit Defence Industry Forum in Ankara, Zelenskyy said Russia’s increasing use of ballistic missiles against Ukrainian cities had exposed a shortage of systems capable of intercepting them, despite Ukraine’s growing ability to manufacture much of its own military equipment.
“Today’s wars have shown that current Patriot production is not enough to meet the growing demand for protection against ballistic missiles. That is a fact. And we must respond to that fact,” Zelenskyy said.
He called on European allies to accelerate efforts to develop a homegrown anti-ballistic missile system, saying work was already underway but needed to move faster.
