"Certain progress" in talks on Patriot air defence systems for Ukraine – Kyiv's ambassador to NATO

Nataliia Halibarenko, Ukraine's Ambassador to NATO, has noted "some progress" in discussions on supplying the country's military with additional Patriot air defence systems.

The ambassador said in an interview with Ukrinform news agency that work is underway "on all levels" on potential Patriot deliveries, but she admitted that it is "not an easy task".

"Not all NATO countries have the Patriot systems that we need to shoot down Russian ballistic missiles. Those countries that do have Patriots, except for the United States, have only a few such systems and have to take into account their capabilities in terms of their own national security, the political situation in the country, and sometimes the upcoming elections," Halibarenko explained.

However, the ambassador stressed that "there is a certain progress" despite the challenges.

"I can't speak about it in detail, but some countries are expressing potential readiness to provide Ukraine with Patriot systems. They are, of course, raising the question of what to replace these systems with, and we must also take this into account," the ambassador said.

On 22 May, Romanian President Klaus Iohannis noted that the condition for providing Ukraine with a Romanian Patriot system is that it should not lead to a weakening of Romania's air defence.

Ukraine's Ambassador to the United States, Oksana Markarova, hopes for "brave decisions" from the United States in anticipation of the desperately needed Patriot air defence systems.

So far, only Germany has responded to Ukraine's request to provide a Patriot battery, and training for this purpose is already underway.