Zelenskyy: US promises on Patriot missile licenses remain unfulfilled

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said in his evening address that the United States has not granted licenses allowing the production of missiles for Patriot air defence systems in Europe, despite earlier commitments.

According to Ukrainian media, Zelenskyy stressed that Ukrainian diplomats, together with Defence Minister Mykhailo Fedorov, must intensify efforts to secure additional air defence missiles for the country. He said he had held a dedicated meeting with the defence minister to determine Ukraine’s priority needs, while several negotiation formats with international partners had taken place during the week.

The president added that Kyiv intends to raise the broader issue of developing Europe’s own air defence missile manufacturing capacity. Although European states are already expanding production, Zelenskyy noted that the pace remains insufficient and that particular attention must be paid to potential output volumes.

“Ukraine spoke about this with America years ago, specifically about the need to create sufficient missile production in Europe, including for Patriot systems. There were promises of licenses, but in the end, America did not agree to this. We proposed production both in Ukraine and jointly with partners in NATO in the region — with Romania, Poland and others,” Zelenskyy said.

He expressed confidence that Ukraine and its European partners are capable of ensuring the required production volumes independently, emphasising that accelerating this process would benefit all sides.

By Tamilla Hasanova