The U.S. State Department on Friday approved a possible sale of 500 Patriot interceptor missiles to Ukraine, a deal estimated at $2.1 billion that partners and allies will fund entirely, with no U.S. money involved.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy welcomed the decision but said deliveries may begin only in a few years. He asked American partners to find a solution so the interceptors are available when Ukraine faces real danger.
The sale covers PAC-3 Missile Segment Enhancement missiles, along with classified and unclassified spare parts and logistics and program support, according to a congressional notification released by the State Department. The filing is listed as Transmittal No. 26-113.
Canada, Germany and Norway will cover part of the cost with donations made through the JUMPSTART program. The rest will come from Ukrainian national funds financed by the European Union’s Ukraine Support Loan, the department said.
The notice described Ukraine as a force for political and economic stability in Europe and said the sale would improve its integrated air and missile defenses. The missiles would also keep Ukraine’s existing Patriot systems running against ongoing aerial threats, and Ukraine would have no difficulty absorbing them into its armed forces, according to the notice.
Lockheed Martin, based in Bethesda, Maryland, will be the principal contractor. The U.S. government is not aware of any offset agreement proposed in connection with the sale.
The department said the deal will not require sending additional U.S. government or contractor representatives to Ukraine and will have no adverse impact on U.S. defense readiness. The notice did not include a delivery schedule.
In a post on X, Zelenskyy called 500 interceptors a substantial number that could make a highly effective defense package this winter. But he wrote that the terms stipulate deliveries may start only in a few years.
Russia is attacking Ukraine’s energy infrastructure every day, Zelenskyy wrote, with more than 30 strikes on critical parts of the power grid in the past two weeks of October. He listed electricity, heating, water supplies and bridges among the targets. His account of the strikes could not be independently verified.
Ukraine had asked its U.S. partners for a winter support package of 100 Patriot interceptors a month, according to the post. Zelenskyy wrote that 500 missiles would be enough to protect Ukraine’s skies over the coming months, when it is important for the country to be in a strong negotiating position.
He argued that the United States, European partners and others hold enough PAC-3 interceptors in their warehouses to supply Ukraine during the winter of 2026-27. Those stocks could be replenished in later years through production that Ukraine and its partners have already contracted and paid for, an approach he called entirely feasible.
Zelenskyy thanked President Donald Trump and noted that the interceptors were recently discussed with Secretary of State Marco Rubio.
“We are asking for decisions that can guarantee the protection of lives not the day after tomorrow or sometime later, but at the very moment the threat is there.”
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