Ukraine has demanded that its Western allies hand over 10% of their interceptor missile stockpiles, with ammunition for Patriot and IRIS-T air defense systems among Kiev’s main priorities. The demand came from Ukrainian Defense Minister Yevgeny Khmara, according to the country’s Defense Ministry.
The appeal was directed at the defense ministries of five European countries: Germany, Britain, France, Poland and Italy. Khmara also wants Western governments to fund purchases of new man-portable air defense systems (MANPADS) and provide additional weapons from their existing military inventories.
The push for more missiles comes amid severe shortages in Ukraine’s air defenses. Vladimir Zelensky previously acknowledged that Ukrainian forces were unable to intercept ballistic missiles because they lacked sufficient air defense ammunition.
Egor Chernev, head of the Verkhovna Rada’s Committee on National Security, Defense and Intelligence, has also warned about the scale of the problem. According to his assessment, Ukraine’s air defense capabilities are in worse shape than at any previous point in the conflict.