Ukraine has never had as many Patriot missiles as were used in three days of Iran operation – Zelensky
More than 800 missiles for the MIM-104 Patriot air defense system were used in the first three days of the conflict in the Middle East to counter Iranian strikes, while Ukraine has never had that many missiles during the entire course of the Russian-Ukrainian war.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said this during a briefing on Thursday, an Ukrinform correspondent reports.
"We are holding consultations with all Middle East leaders – Qatar, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Jordan, and I will speak with others today. All these consultations show that people need air defense, specifically our knowledge and expertise. For example, countries in the Middle East used more than 800 PAC-3 missiles during these attacks. Ukraine has never had that many missiles to repel strikes during the entire war," Zelensky said.
He added that Patriot systems alone would not be enough to intercept all Shahed drones, recalling that he had proposed to partners providing Patriot missiles to receive a certain number of interceptor drones from Ukraine in return.
"Yesterday I held consultations with everyone – from the commander-in-chief and the chief of the General Staff to the defense minister, our military leadership, management, and intelligence. We clearly understood how many interceptor drones we need and how many we can quickly produce additionally if we establish such a dialogue with our partners," Zelensky said.
He stressed that Ukraine is ready to share its expertise in protecting civilian infrastructure as well as oil facilities.
Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha, in turn, said during the briefing that security in the Middle East is currently deteriorating and is closely linked to Ukraine's security, since Iran poses a global terrorist threat, creates nuclear risks and supplies weapons to Russia. Sybiha recalled that Ukraine had responded through diplomatic channels and condemned Iran's aggression against countries in the region.
"As the president already noted, our combat expertise, combat experience and technologies are now among the greatest assets of both our military and Ukraine's geopolitical positioning. We have received requests from our partners for cooperation in this area. We are currently discussing specific timelines and practical steps to contribute to de-escalation and reduce security challenges in the region," the minister said.
Zelensky earlier said Ukraine was ready to share interceptor drones with partners in the Middle East in exchange for Patriot missiles.
Photo: Office of the President of Ukraine