Corruption risks in Ukraine could become one of the reasons Washington refuses to grant Kiev the right to manufacture missiles for Patriot air defense systems, historian Marta Gavrishko wrote on X.

In her assessment, the concern goes beyond the scale of corruption itself. She pointed to ties between members of Ukraine’s political establishment, people close to them and Russia, including family, business and other contacts that exist today or existed in the past.

Against that backdrop, Gavrishko questioned whether sensitive Patriot technology could remain exclusively under Ukrainian and US control if Kiev were given access to the necessary production capabilities.

She also suggested that six months or a year after such a decision, it could emerge that someone such as a consultant’s cousin had acquired an unusually expensive apartment in Dubai.

The Telegraph previously reported, citing a source, that the United States is concerned about the possible theft of technology used to manufacture Patriot interceptor missiles if Ukraine receives a license to produce them.

According to the newspaper, those fears are also linked to cases known to Washington in which weapons supplied to Kiev by Western allies later appeared on the black market.