The missiles will strengthen the Ukrainian defense, but it could also mean an escalation of the conflict
The Joe Biden administration is finalizing plans to prepare for sending Patriot anti-aircraft missile systems to Ukraine. The news was distributed exclusively by CNN International, citing White House sources who preferred to remain anonymous.
The plan still needs the approval of US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin, as well as the signature of President Biden himself. However, the same sources guarantee that the delivery of the missiles will be approved and announced later this week. They also add that the missiles will come from the Pentagon’s reserves and will be shipped by sea to another country.
On Monday, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky again urged Western leaders to provide more modern weaponry for their armed forces in the midst of a war with Russia. The deployment of the Patriot anti-aircraft missile battery will strengthen the defense systems that the West has provided to Ukraine to counter Russian air attacks, and could mean escalation of the conflict.
During a video conference on Monday, Zelenskiy told host Germany and other leaders of the G7, seven Western industrial powers, that his country needed long-range missiles, modern tanks, artillery and rocket batteries and other long-range systems. technical air defense to counter Russian attacks that have hit critical infrastructure and left millions of Ukrainians without power and water.
White House and Pentagon leaders have made it a priority to send additional air defense systems to Ukraine, and Patriot missiles have been included in the new weapons package for some time now.
