US to Grant Ukraine Patriot Missile License

US President Donald Trump announced Wednesday at the NATO summit in Ankara that the United States will grant Ukraine a license to manufacture its own missiles for the Patriot defense system. During a bilateral meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, he said he prefers defensive weapons over offensive ones.

Trump added that Washington has significant influence over defense contractors and that the main supplier, Lockheed Martin, will be thrilled by the move, even though it has not yet been officially informed of the plan.

Zelensky has repeatedly requested the systems, as they are the only weapons in Ukraine's arsenal capable of destroying Russian ballistic missiles. The need to strengthen defenses was also underscored by the latest nighttime attack on Kyiv. Although the Ukrainian military neutralized most of the drones, a critical shortage of sophisticated systems left it unable to shoot down any of the five ballistic missiles.

The US president said he believed both Russia and Ukraine want to resolve the conflict. He noted, however, that Russian President Vladimir Putin and Zelensky are tough negotiators, which complicates the process.

Zelensky responded by saying he needed to discuss important details with Trump. “I'm sure you will do everything to stop this war”, he said.

Moscow's airstrikes have intensified recently, as its ground advance has stalled and it faces a serious fuel shortage.

(Reuters, Max)