U.S. President Joe Biden's administration is working to supply Ukraine with an additional Patriot air defense battery to help the country repel Russian aerial attacks, Bloomberg reported on May 15, citing undisclosed sources.
Washington aims to send a single battery along with radars, with the costs likely to be covered by the recently passed $61-billion aid package, the outlet wrote.
Kyiv has been urging its partners to send additional air defense systems as Russia intensifies its strikes against Ukrainian population centers and infrastructure.
President Volodymyr Zelensky said that Ukraine would need 25 Patriot systems or their equivalents to protect the whole country.
Chris York
When U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken arrived in Kyiv on May 14, Zelensky told him that his country requires two Patriots to protect only Kharkiv Oblast, which has been a target of a renewed onslaught by Russian forces.
Kyiv is believed to operate at least three Patriot systems and associated equipment provided by the U.S., Germany, and the Netherlands. Berlin pledged in April to send one additional system.
Ukraine should receive another IRIS-T system from Germany in May.
European allies are also working on plans to send additional air defenses to Ukraine, Bloomberg's sources said.
The Italian news outlet La Repubblica reported on May 2 that Italy is preparing to supply Ukraine with an additional SAMP/T air defense system as part of its upcoming package.
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