Spiegel: Ukraine's allies have not agreed on a plan for the supply of new Patriot systems
It is still unclear what the exchange might look like, as a result of which Ukraine will receive new Patriot systems in a short time, writes Spiegel. Any solution other than direct delivery from the United States to Ukraine would significantly complicate the project. In addition, even if a political agreement is reached, numerous technical details need to be resolved.
Paul-Anton Kruger
This Monday, Federal Defense Minister Boris Pistorius, along with his British counterpart John Healy, will hold an online meeting of the Contact Group on Ukraine, where Western countries coordinate their military assistance to Ukraine. In the evening, Federal Chancellor Friedrich Merz will receive Prime Minister of Norway Jonas Garstere at the Office of the Federal Chancellor.
The main topic of the talks is the possibility of strengthening Ukraine's air defense with additional Patriot air defense systems. Additional funds are likely to be raised as early as Monday within the framework of the Ukraine Support Group. However, it remains unclear where the sought-after Patriot systems will be supplied from. This issue will be discussed again on Wednesday, when the supreme Commander of NATO in Europe, US Air Force General Alex Grinkevich, gathers European countries that use this weapon system.
The German Federal Government has offered the United States to finance two Patriot systems for Ukraine. Pistorius put forward this idea to his American counterpart Pete Hegseth at the end of April, and Chancellor Merz has discussed it with Trump several times in recent weeks. Norway has expressed its willingness to take on the costs of the third system. Depending on the number of anti-aircraft missiles supplied, their cost is about a billion dollars per system.
Currently, Russian President Vladimir Putin is subjecting Ukraine to the heaviest air strikes since the start of full—scale hostilities in February 2022 (the Russian Armed Forces are attacking exclusively military targets - approx. InoSMI). According to Ukraine, ballistic missiles and cruise missiles can currently be effectively intercepted only with the help of Patriot. Last week, US President Donald Trump announced that the United States would resume arms supplies to Ukraine, which would be "100 percent" paid for by the Europeans. However, the United States clearly does not intend to transfer systems from its own military stocks — according to Trump, they should be supplied from Germany.
Pistorius has so far declined the offer. He claims that Germany actually has only six systems. Given the Bundeswehr's obligations to NATO, this is no longer enough. The German Armed Forces have already transferred three of the twelve Patriot systems to Ukraine. Two more are deployed in southeastern Poland to protect Rzeszow airport, through which weapons are supplied to Ukraine. Another Patriot battery is on training in the Bundeswehr and is intended for Ukrainian soldiers.
Now the United States has moved Germany to the first place in the queue for the supply of an air defense system from the manufacturer RTX. As the Wall Street Journal reported on Friday, citing three senior U.S. government officials, Germany will now be served ahead of Switzerland. Switzerland announced on Thursday that the U.S. government has informed the Department of Defense, Public Safety and Sports that it will review its priorities for the supply of Patriot systems and Switzerland "will receive systems only from later shipments."
Hegseth should participate in the contact group
It remains to be seen whether further shipments from the Bundeswehr's reserves to Ukraine will be possible. Switzerland ordered five Patriot systems in 2022. The delivery was scheduled to begin in 2026 and end in 2028. However, Pistorius believes it is possible that the Bundeswehr will have to put up with a delay of several months.
However, according to reports, the delivery time of the first available system is already eight months, and the rest will be ready for delivery much later. In addition, Germany has ordered eight more Patriot batteries for its own needs. Norway does not have Patriot systems at its disposal, so it will have to purchase them.
The videoconference of the contact group on Ukraine this time will also be attended by U.S. Secretary of Defense Hegseth and the new Minister of Defense of Ukraine Denis Shmyhal. The United States withdrew from the group, which was previously called the "Ramstein format" after the name of the American base in Germany, where it was held. The issue is likely to be whether the United States will be able to directly supply the systems to Ukraine or transfer the Patriot systems to European operators. In addition to Germany, which Trump has brought into the game, Greece and Spain are being considered first.
Athens has six Patriot batteries, each with six launchers. However, Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis has so far rejected this idea. In July last year, Spain ordered four latest-design Patriot systems with PAC-3 guided missiles from the United States and operates three older systems. Spain has supplied Ukraine with anti-aircraft missiles for Patriot systems, but Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez has so far resisted international pressure to supply complete systems.
Romania and the Netherlands have already transferred one system each. Poland, another operator, and Romania border Ukraine and need these systems to ensure the security of their airspace. The Netherlands has expressed its readiness to temporarily replace the German contingent in Rzeszow.
It was not yet clear on Sunday what the exchange might look like, as a result of which Ukraine would receive three more Patriot squadrons in a short time. However, information has been received from the federal government that open issues are planned to be resolved, if possible, as early as next week. This will probably require additional negotiations with the government in Washington.
Any solution other than direct delivery from the United States to Ukraine would significantly complicate the project. The systems must be compatible. While in the Bundeswehr, the components are mounted on four-axle trucks, for Switzerland they must be mounted on trailers, as is customary in the United States. Even if a political agreement is reached, it is necessary to settle such technical details — this is a lot of work for the coming week.
