The US government plans to divert Patriot air defence systems destined for other countries to Ukraine to help Kyiv protect its cities and critical infrastructure, the Financial Times reported on Thursday.
Joe Biden’s administration could announce the move as early as Thursday, after the President said last week that five countries had agreed to send Patriot systems, adding: “everything we have is going to go to Ukraine until their needs are met”.
On Thursday, Romania’s supreme defence council said it would donate one of the country’s two operational Patriot air defence systems to Ukraine, on the condition there would be negotiations with Nato allies to replace it with a similar system.
Volodymyr Zelensky said Romania’s decision to provide his country with a Patriot air defence system would bolster Ukraine’s air defence shield and strengthen security throughout Europe.
Ukraine has drummed up its lobbying for the US-made Patriot defences, vital for Kyiv’s chances of shooting down Russia’s ballistic and hypersonic missiles, in the wake of intensified attacks on its critical energy sector.
Earlier this month, German Defence Minister Boris Pistorius announced his country would deliver another 100 Patriot air defence missiles to Ukraine in an initiative involving Denmark, the Netherlands and Norway.
It comes as Vladimir Putin was welcomed in Vietnam with a 21-gun salute on Thursday as he began his official visit to the Communist-run state, the day after he signed an anti-West mutual defence pact with North Korea’s Kim Jong Un in Pyongyang.