Great Britain will transfer 650 air defense missiles to Ukraine for £162 million

The UK will supply Ukraine with 650 light multi-purpose Martlet missiles in a £162m (€192m) contract to boost its air defences.

This was reported in the British Ministry of Defense.

The aid package will be reported by Defense Minister John Healey at a meeting of the Ukrainian Defense Contact Group at the US Air Force Base “Ramstein” — this will be his first meeting as Defense Minister.

The aid from Great Britain became known after a meeting between Healey and his Ukrainian counterpart Rustem Umerov in London earlier this week. At this meeting, the British Defense Secretary confirmed that £300 million worth of artillery ammunition would begin arriving by the end of the year.

The first batch of Martlet missiles should also be delivered by the end of this year. Built by Thales at a factory in Belfast, UK, these missiles are extremely versatile — they can be launched from a variety of platforms on land, sea and in the air.

This aid is mainly financed through the UKʼs £3 billion annual package for Ukraine, as well as Norwayʼs contributions to the International Fund for Ukraine (IFU).

• The 24th meeting of the Contact Group on Defense of Ukraine, known as the “Ramstein” format, will be held on September 6 at the American military air base of the same name in Germany.