Ukraine received only 24 Patriot interceptor missiles from U.S. in 90 days – Zelenskyy
Ukraine has received only 24 Patriot interceptor missiles from the United States over the past three months despite intensifying Russian ballistic missile attacks, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy told ABC News on Oct. 24.
President Volodymyr Zelenskyy informed ABC News that Ukraine has only received 24 Patriot interceptor missiles from the United States in the last 90 days, despite facing increasingly frequent Russian ballistic missile assaults. In his words, Ukraine requires an average of 350 Patriot interceptor missiles each month to defend effectively.
On October 22 alone, Russian forces fired over 20 ballistic missiles towards Ukraine. Speaking about the situation, Zelenskyy emphasized that every single missile is crucial, highlighting the importance of each interceptor in the country's defense. Comparing Ukraine's experience to conflicts in the Middle East, Zelenskyy pointed out that during the first 84 hours, countries there deployed around 2,000 missiles provided by their allies.
As of October 15, a CNN source reportedly confirmed that Ukraine had depleted its reserves of interceptors for the U.S.-made Patriot air defense system. The lack of interceptors likely contributed to the failure of Ukrainian air defenses to stop most of the ballistic missiles fired on October 14. Zelenskyy later revealed to Bloomberg that Ukraine is only receiving 12 Patriot interceptor missiles per month, a figure roughly four times lower than the number supplied under the Joe Biden administration.
On October 22, Zelenskyy reported that Russia had launched 21 ballistic missiles at Kyiv, but none of them were intercepted by Ukrainian air defenses. The president warned that Russia plans to escalate its ballistic missile attacks on Ukraine as the supply of U.S. interceptor missiles dwindles.
Written by urgent.news from New Voice of Ukraine's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
