Ukraine plans to purchase PAC-3 missiles for the Patriot system directly, says Fedorov
Ukraine is working to conclude direct contracts for the procurement of PAC-3 anti-ballistic missiles for Patriot systems. Defense Minister Mykhailo Fedorov announced this during a joint press conference with Swedish Defense Minister Paul Jonsson in Kyiv.
According to the defense minister, this could mark the first time Ukraine has directly procured PAC-3 missiles, and he expressed confidence that the relevant agreements will be reached in the near future.
“We are currently working to contract for the direct purchase of PAC-3 missiles, which has never happened before. And I am confident that we will be able to do this in the near future,” Fedorov said.
The minister noted that the United States continues to supply missiles to Ukraine, but their quantity is insufficient to fully meet the needs of Ukraine’s air defense.
According to Fedorov, Ukraine has a clear plan for securing additional missiles and is also working on “non-obvious solutions” together with international partners.
“We were just discussing this yesterday with the Swedish defense minister and the president. We have some unconventional solutions on how to do this, how to involve other partners who have never provided us with PAC-3 missiles before. We are working on this 24/7. Our goal is to secure more of these missiles,” the minister emphasized.
Fedorov noted that, with Germany’s support, Ukraine has already signed a major contract for the supply of hundreds of PAC-2 GEM-T missiles, with deliveries set to begin next year.
“First, thanks to Germany, we’ve signed a major contract for hundreds of these missiles, with deliveries set to begin next year. But we now want to, so to speak, ‘borrow’ these missiles from certain countries with the intention of returning them later,” he explained.
At the same time, the minister acknowledged that finding missiles among the stockpiles of European Union countries is a complex process.
“We simply asked each country for one, two, or three missiles. And, in the end, we received a certain number—several dozen. They helped us repel Russian attacks in February and March. We are continuing this work. But, of course, we plan to receive more missiles thanks to the fact that we will have direct contracts,” Fedorov said.
According to the minister, Ukraine is simultaneously pursuing two strategies to strengthen its air defense:
- maximizing the procurement of PAC-2 and PAC-3 missiles from partners;
- working to develop its own anti-ballistic missile.
“I cannot disclose details or specific figures so as not to give our enemy additional information. But I will say this: it’s a very difficult process involving the full commitment of our president, who is also taking specific steps every day to ensure we have additional missiles,” Fedorov concluded.
As a reminder, during President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s visit to Germany in April, 10 documents were signed, including a contract with the American company Raytheon for the supply of PAC-2 missiles and an agreement with the German company Diehl Defence regarding IRIS-T systems.
He made these remarks at a joint press conference in Kyiv with his Swedish counterpart, Paul Jonsson.
As a reminder, the U.S. signed a contract worth over $1.1 billion with Raytheon (RTX) for the production of nearly 2,000 AIM-9X air-to-air missiles. Part of this batch is intended for export to Ukraine, where the missiles are used by F-16 fighter jets and NASAMS air defense systems.
Earlier, Norway recently transferred a significant number of missiles to Ukraine for its NASAMS air defense systems. The Norwegian government emphasizes that air defense remains the top priority for military aid to Ukraine. The delivery took place at a critical moment, as Russian attacks continue almost daily.
Volodymyr Zelenskyy reported that Ukraine has an operational infrastructure of NASAMS air defense missile systems, which partially protect the country’s priority targets.
