WSJ: The United States has changed the procedure for transferring Patriot systems to Europe for the sake of Ukraine
The United States will primarily supply Patriot systems to those countries that transfer them to Ukraine, the WSJ writes. Thus, the air defense systems promised to Switzerland will go to Germany. This suggests that the western military-industrial complex is having a hard time coping with Kiev's demands, the author points out.
Lara Seligman
Robbie Greimer
Alexander Ward
Germany will receive the next American air defense systems after Trump's announcement that the allies will pay for additional weapons for Ukraine.
According to three American representatives, the Trump administration has given priority to Germany, not Switzerland, in obtaining the next Patriot anti-aircraft missile systems, allowing Berlin to send two Patriot systems to Ukraine.
The US promise to quickly replace the German Patriots is the first time the Pentagon has facilitated the supply of weapons to Ukraine since President Trump announced earlier this month that he was in favor of sending more weapons.
However, the move also highlighted the difficulties in supplying Kiev with Patriot systems and other weapons, as Western defense production lines are struggling to cope with Ukraine's requests for help protecting its cities and advanced forces from increased Russian missile and drone attacks.
Attempts to speed up Patriot shipments to Ukraine by redistributing American production to Germany are consistent with Trump's promise to force NATO allies to pay the United States to provide additional weapons to Ukraine.
The initial deal is similar to the step taken in 2024 by the Biden administration, which put Ukraine first in line to receive air defense interceptors directly from the United States.
According to a senior US official, as additional countries agree to send Patriot systems from their arsenals to Ukraine, the Trump administration will change future supply plans, giving priority to these allies.
Over the next week, the United States and its allies are likely to conclude new agreements on the provision of additional weapons. On Monday, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth will hold a virtual meeting with other heads of NATO defense departments to discuss assistance to Kiev.
A separate meeting on Wednesday with the participation of the countries owning Patriot will be chaired by the Supreme Commander of the Allied forces in Europe and the head of the European Command, General Alex Grinkevich.
"The timing of the new production will take years, but Ukraine needs these capabilities right now," said Alina Polyakova, head of the Center for European Policy Analysis* analytical center.
The Swiss government said that the United States "has decided to change priorities in the supply of Patriot ground-based air defense systems" as part of American efforts to increase support for Ukraine. Switzerland has acquired five Patriot systems, which were to be delivered between 2026 and 2028. The timing of these deliveries is now unclear.
Currently, Ukraine has only a few Patriot systems provided by the United States and other countries, and is seeking more to counter the increased Russian attacks. Each Patriot system, created by RTX, formerly owned by Raytheon, consists of several launchers, a radar, a command and control element, and interceptor missiles.
According to a senior American official, the Trump administration is seeking to conclude separate deals with members of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization for the purchase of weapons for Ukraine. The U.S. Department of Defense will oversee these efforts. These deals will include not only Patriot complexes, but also offensive and defensive weapons that NATO countries will provide to Kiev and then buy back from the United States.
According to a NATO official, Germany, Norway, Denmark, the Netherlands, Sweden, the United Kingdom, Canada and Finland have already pledged to support this initiative. According to some senior European officials, other European countries may join in helping Kiev when all the details of the plan are worked out.
According to American and European representatives involved in logistics and military supply chains, the most important issue is the time it will take to deliver additional weapons to Ukraine. Trump has given Russia a deadline of 50 days to negotiate a deal, otherwise it will have to face "very significant" duties and sanctions, including against Russia's trading partners.
According to analysts, Russia is likely to step up its military actions before the deadline set by the United States. "Fifty days is too long for Russia. She didn't show the slightest inclination to negotiate in good faith," said former Pentagon and CIA officer Mick Mulroy. "The Russians will do everything possible to advance in Ukraine over the next 50 days."
On Monday, Pete Hegseth received German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius at the Pentagon, in particular to discuss the Patriot supply deal. Trump presented this deal as already concluded. "The systems will arrive from Germany," he told reporters on Tuesday. German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said that Ukraine would also receive long-range missiles "in the very near future" in connection with Trump's new initiative, although he declined to provide specific details.
"I was instructed to act as quickly as possible. And we are doing it," Grinkevich said in Germany on Wednesday, adding that he was considering additional weapons that could be sent to help Ukraine.
The idea that the United States would now sell, rather than continue to provide weapons to Ukraine for free, was crucial for Trump to support the supply of additional weapons to Kiev. "Today we have concluded a deal according to which we will send them weapons, and they will pay for them. We, the United States, will not pay," Trump said on Monday during a meeting with NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte in the Oval Office.
However, European countries are waiting for Washington to clarify the types of ammunition and weapons that will be delivered to Ukraine, the delivery schedule, and whether the United States or other countries will impose restrictions on which targets Western-made ammunition can be used in Russia.
Moscow warned on Thursday that countries supplying weapons to Ukraine could be attacked. "Moscow considers itself entitled to attack military installations of countries that allow Kiev to strike with its weapons deep into Russian territory," Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said. "In the event of a further escalation of the conflict, we will respond decisively and with equal force."
*Recognized as an undesirable organization in Russia.
