Ukraine tried to secure a license to manufacture Patriot air defense interceptor missiles during the administration of former U.S. President Joe Biden, Kyiv Independent reported, citing senior Ukrainian officials.
According to the officials, the proposal was brought to then-U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin and presidential national security adviser Jake Sullivan. One Ukrainian official familiar with the discussions said they tried to make it happen and offered various options, but were simply told no without any explanation.
Officials told the outlet that if the previous U.S. administration had approved the proposal, Ukraine could already be producing the interceptors needed to defend its cities from Russian missile attacks.
Fear of a policy shift
The outlet reported that as the Biden administration entered its final months, Ukrainian negotiators worried that Donald Trump's return to the White House could change the nature of Washington's support for Kyiv. Rather than wait to see what would happen, they tried to build a long-term security arrangement.
One proposal would have allowed Ukraine to produce Patriot interceptor missiles under license, either on its own or jointly with European partners. The outlet noted this is the only weapon capable of reliably destroying Russian ballistic missiles.
Same request, harsher conditions
Almost two years later, Ukraine has raised the same request again, this time under far more difficult circumstances, according to the outlet. Russia has sharply intensified missile strikes on Kyiv and other cities while Ukraine faces an acute shortage of interceptors.
The urgency became especially clear during a Russian attack on August 1, the outlet said. According to Ukraine's Air Force, Russia launched 35 missiles, including 27 ballistic ones, with most aimed at Kyiv. Ukraine intercepted only two of them.
