A Patriot missile launcher stands on guard as a B-1 bomber of the US Air Force takes to the air. (Image credit: US DoW)
Germany can no longer provide Ukraine with additional Patriot air defence systems or interceptor missiles without compromising its own national security, defence minister Boris Pistorius has said, urging other allies to step up military support as Kyiv faces mounting Russian attacks on its energy infrastructure ahead of winter. Speaking to German magazine Focus, Pistorius said Berlin had reached the limit of what it could transfer from its military stockpiles after supplying Ukraine with several Patriot batteries and ammunition packages since Russia’s full-scale invasion. More is not possible right now,” he said.
“Everything we provide now, we would not be able to replenish for the time being; this would lead to gaps in our own defence for which we cannot take responsibility.
The proposal follows the Trump administration’s approval on October 30 of a possible $2.1 billion sale of 500 Patriot Advanced Capability-3 Missile Segment Enhancement (PAC-3 MSE) interceptors to Ukraine. However, the newly manufactured missiles are not expected to begin arriving until after 2030, meaning they would not address Kyiv’s immediate requirements for the coming winter.
Pistorius said other international partners would have to shoulder a greater share of the responsibility for supplying Ukraine with advanced air defence systems and interceptor missiles. In an interview with Fox News, Zelenskyy said Kyiv was prepared to halt attacks on Russian oil refineries if Moscow stopped striking Ukraine’s energy facilities. “We said that if you want us not to attack Russia’s refineries, they must not attack our energy system,” Zelenskyy said, adding that he had raised the proposal with US President Donald Trump and his team.
The issue is expected to feature prominently at the next Ukraine Defence Contact Group meeting, to be held in the Ramstein format in mid-November. The warning comes as Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy seeks urgent supplies of Patriot missiles to protect the country’s energy infrastructure during the winter months. He also proposed that the US provide Ukraine with a one-month supply of Patriot interceptors, saying Kyiv was willing to purchase the missiles rather than receive them as military aid.