Ukrainian foreign minister Dmytro Kuleba has strongly urged Western countries to provide additional air defense systems to help intercept Russian attacks.
Kuleba said Ukraine needs Patriot missile batteries on the frontlines to protect lives and the economy from destruction by new Russian weapons like upgraded GPS-guided bombs that have proven difficult to intercept.
“Give us the [expletive] Patriots,” Kuleba said.
“If we had enough air defense systems, namely Patriots, we would be able to protect not only the lives of our people, but also our economy from destruction… You cannot jam [the new bombs]. It just falls on your head and destroys everything… We need air-defense systems on the frontlines,” he said.
While Patriot systems are highly effective, they are also expensive and in limited supply worldwide.
Each battery costs over $1 billion and interceptor missiles $4 million each.
The US only has 60 batteries deployed globally.
Ukraine has sought Patriots since early in the war, but supplying them poses challenges given the shortage and costs.
Kuleba argued they are essential to defend Ukraine’s large airspace from Russia’s upgraded arsenal.
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