Germany, Norway ready to buy 3 Patriots for Ukraine, Zelensky says
Germany and Norway are prepared to purchase three Patriot air defense systems for Ukraine from a U.S. manufacturer, President Volodymyr Zelensky said during a press conference in Rome on July 10.
"Germany is ready to pay – I have agreements with them – for two systems. Norway is ready to pay – I have bilateral agreements with Prime Minister (Jonas Gahr Stoere) – one system," Zelensky said on the sidelines of the Ukraine Recovery Conference.
The announcement follows Kyiv's calls for Western partners to provide additional air defenses to help Ukraine repel intensifying Russian aerial strikes.
Zelensky added that Ukraine needs a total of 10 Patriots and voiced hope that other European partners will join the new financing scheme. He noted that a final response from the U.S. manufacturer is still awaited.
Speaking at the Recovery Conference earlier on July 10, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz confirmed that Berlin is willing to purchase Patriots for Ukraine from the U.S., though adding that a final decision has not yet been made.
The comments followed reporting that U.S. President Donald Trump appealed to Merz to purchase a Patriot battery to boost Kyiv's air defenses. The U.S. president also said separately that he is "looking" into the possibility of helping Ukraine acquire additional Patriots.
At a press conference in Malaysia on July 10, U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio also acknowledged Ukraine's need for air defenses and urged European allies to provide their Patriot batteries.
"Ukrainians need more Patriot batteries. Many European countries have them, but no one wants to part with theirs. I hope that will change," Rubio said.
"I hope we can convince some of our NATO partners to send these batteries to Ukraine."
The comments followed confusion caused by what appeared to be a unilateral decision by the Pentagon to halt some of the weapons shipments en route to Ukraine, including Patriot missiles and precision munitions. Deliveries of at least some of the shipments have since then reportedly resumed, and Trump pledged to provide additional military support to Kyiv.
The Patriots are powerful U.S.-produced air defenses that have played a key role in protecting the Ukrainian skies. They are one of the few systems capable of intercepting Russian ballistic missiles.
Ukraine operates at least six of these systems, provided over the past years by the U.S., Germany, the Netherlands, and Romania.
Russia has ramped up aerial strikes against Ukraine in the past weeks, launching a record of over 740 drones and missiles on July 9. A day later, Russian forces again launched around 400 drones and 18 missiles against the country, primarily targeting Kyiv.