Ukraine completely out of Patriot interceptors — report

Ukraine has depleted its supply of interceptors for U.S.-made Patriot air defense systems, making the nation more susceptible to Russian ballistic missile assaults, CNN reported on October 15, according to an informed source. The source indicated that a significant portion of the ballistic missiles fired during the attack on Kyiv on October 14 were not intercepted due to a shortage of Patriot interceptors.

On the night of the assault, which persisted into Wednesday morning, Russian forces targeted three power plants in Kyiv and energy infrastructure in Kharkiv. CNN pointed out that this was not the first instance where Ukraine had completely depleted its Patriot interceptors. In mid-August, CNN was granted access to a Ukrainian air defense system, where officials disclosed that the country was nearly out of interceptors.

President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, during that period, was reportedly making "millions" of phone calls to allies in search of additional Patriot missiles. He stated that Ukraine possessed only one-tenth of the interceptors urgently required. On September 24, Zelenskyy announced an agreement on a new package of missiles for Patriot air defense systems, though he did not specify which country had agreed to supply them.

On September 26, Reuters reported that the Trump administration had legally committed to spending the $400 million allocated by Congress for military aid to Ukraine. However, this package would not include Patriot missiles.