Media: NATO fears Trump will delay “Patriot” missile transfer to Ukraine after US midterm elections

NATO fears that Ukraine will not receive “Patriot” interceptor missiles before the US midterm elections. Some analysts suggest that the US President Donald Trump may use military aid as leverage to pressure Ukraine into making concessions.

Euronews reports this, citing NATO sources.

According to the journalistsʼ interlocutors, US NATO allies are not sure whether Ukraine will receive the interceptors and when this might happen.

Ukrainian estimates suggest that the US produces about 60-65 “Patriot” interceptors per month, fewer than the number of ballistic missiles Russia fired at Kyiv and the region in just two weeks. Some analysts believe that Trump’s delay in handing over “Patriot” interceptors is intended to show voters that he is taking steps to curb rising energy prices.

Ukraine receives American weapons under the PURL mechanism, under which NATO allies finance the purchase of weapons for Kyiv.

According to former US Ambassador to NATO Kurt Volker, the delay in the delivery of “Patriot” missiles may be related to US needs in the war against Iran. He noted that European countries have already purchased the missiles, but they have not yet been delivered to Ukraine, and the Pentagon has not explained the reasons for the delay.

• Last week, The Washington Post, citing sources, wrote that the allies are ready to transfer some “Patriot” missiles to Ukraine, but this requires Pentagon permission, since the missiles are manufactured in the United States. According to the publicationʼs sources, the US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has not yet granted such permission.
• Hegseth himself stated that the US has not changed its position on Ukraine, and the delay in the delivery of “Patriot” interceptor missiles is due to the fact that they are first checking their own stocks.
• On October 24, President Volodymyr Zelensky reported that Ukraine had received only 24 missiles for “Patriot” systems from the United States in the last 90 days.

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