Will Ukraine get a license for Patriots?

“He agreed to grant us a licence, and then I had a meeting with representatives of the production sector, very important American arms companies,” Zelenskyy said regarding the conversation with Donald Trump. “I hope that we will launch joint production,” he added. At present, the American side has not confirmed this declaration.

Patriots guarantee the effective interception of Russian ballistic missiles. However, Ukraine is consuming missiles, and the US is unable to deliver new ones on time; furthermore, they are simply expensive. As early as this spring, Zelenskyy warned of the critical state of ammunition stocks for these launchers. The situation was further exacerbated by the United States’ conflict with Iran, during which missiles are also being used to defend American bases and facilities in the Middle East region. It is estimated that the US has fired between 1,060 and 1,430 missiles. This is a significantly higher number than the total quantity of missiles Ukraine has received from all its allies over the last four years.

The interview with Fox News also addressed the current situation at the front. Zelenskyy pointed out that “the initiative is no longer in Putin’s hands. He is losing 30,000 soldiers a month. (…) These are heavy losses, yet he does not want to end this war.” Appeals for a ceasefire are proving ineffective, and no peace negotiations are currently being conducted between the parties.

Obtaining a licence to produce missiles for Patriot systems would allow Ukraine to become independent of its Western partner. Naturally, the implementation of the licence itself, the construction of industrial infrastructure, and the production of the missiles will take several years. Ukraine is seeking a licence to build the latest version of the missiles: the PAC-3 MSE. The list of countries with such a capability is exceptionally short. Japan is currently the only country building Patriots under an American licence.