Paul Adams
Diplomatic correspondent
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President Donald Trump has said he will send weapons, including the Patriot Air Defence System, for Ukraine via NATO.
“We’re going to send patriots to NATO, and NATO will distribute them,” Trump told NBC News, adding that NATO will pay for the weapons.
His announcement comes after Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said he had had a “positive dialogue” with Trump to ensure that the weapons arrived on time, and in particular the air defense system would arrive.
Zelensky said he called for 10 patriot systems after a surge in Russian drone and missile attacks last week.
Speaking in Rome on Thursday, the Ukrainian leader said Germany was ready to pay two patriots and Norway for one, but other European partners were also ready to help.
Last week after a phone call with Russian Vladimir Putin, Trump said he was “not happy” with no progress made to end the war, and since then he accused Putin of “very wonderful” attitude of being found to be pointless.
In an interview with NBC News, Trump said he would make a “major statement” in Russia on Monday, but did not say what that would happen.
He said “NATO will “refund all costs” for weapons sent to Ukraine. NATO is funded through the contributions of its members, including the United States.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio told reporters Friday that he urged countries, including Germany and Spain, to hand over some of the existing patriot batteries to help them reach Ukraine faster.
“We continue to encourage NATO allies to provide those weapons… They have them in their shares, so we can enter into financial agreements where they can buy alternatives.”
The US Department of Defense last week suspended the shipment of some of its critical weapons, raising concerns in Kiev that air defense could drop in the next few months.
Among the weapons reported to be suspended were patriot intercept missiles and precision shells.
After that, Trump said he would send more weapons as Ukraine was hit by a record number of drone attacks this week.
Zelensky appealed for the reopening of cargo, describing the patriot system as “the real guardian of life.”
On Tuesday night, Ukraine was hit by a record 728 drones, and the Ukrainian president warned that Russia would like to increase it to 1,000.
According to the United Nations, the highest monthly civilian casualty in Ukraine in three years was the highest in three years, killing 232 people and wounding more than 1,300 people.
The New York Times says that the battery of a former Israel-based patriot will be sent to Ukraine after its US renovation, citing an unknown US official.
Negotiations over Israeli batteries have been ongoing for some time. Last month, a Kiev official said that although it had already been sent to the US, Ukraine was still waiting to receive it.
The patriot air defense batteries, and the interceptor missiles they fire, play a key role in protecting Ukrainian cities, civilian and military infrastructure from Russian cruises and ballistic missile attacks.
In addition to Soviet-era S-300 surface-to-air missiles and Western-made NASAMs (National Advanced Surface-to-Air Missile Systems), patriots help Ukraine maintain what the military often refers to as “layered defense.”
With its advanced radar, tracking and high interception rates, Patriots are considered one of the best air defense systems in the world.
Without it, Ukraine would have a hard time protecting itself from the relentless fires of Moscow.
But it also makes it eye-opening expensive for a single battery containing missiles worth around $1 billion (£740 million). This helps explain why the Western countries running the patriot system are reluctant to let them go.
The Ukrainian military already knows how to use them.
The first two western-supplied batteries arrived in April 2023 after months of pleas from Kiev. The exact number of systems currently in use is a closely guarded secret.
However, adding additional batteries will allow Ukraine to place more cities and major facilities, including military bases and power plants, under the protection umbrella of the system.
Ukraine is a huge country. It can never protect everything, or everyone. However, as Russian air attacks increase in frequency and size, it appears that Kiev’s western allies are aware of the urgency of the need.
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The patriot system received by Ukraine will be seen in 2024
Since re-entering the White House in January, Trump has pushed US support for Ukraine to scale back.
According to the Kiel Institute, the US was the largest source of military aid to Ukraine from the beginning of 2022 to the end of 2024, giving it $690 billion (£54.6 billion) for that period.
Trump is also pushing NATO allies to pledge more GDP to the Security Alliance. Last year, all European NATO members promised to spend 2% of their GDP on defense.
Russia began a full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. The United States is urging both countries to reach an agreement to end the war.
Rubio told reporters that he and Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov had a “frank” conversation about the bystanders of a meeting held in Malaysia on Thursday.
Rubio repeated Trump’s “frustration over his lack of progress in peace talks.”
He said the two shared some new ideas about how the conflict could be concluded.
Rubio declined to elaborate on what Trump said on Monday was a “major” announcement about Russia.
