The Netherlands, together with other countries that own Patriot air defense systems, decided to assemble such an installation as soon as possible and present it to Ukraine.
This was reported by the Ministry of Defense of the Netherlands.
The Netherlands is ready to provide major components and parts from its stockpile for the Patriot installation. European allies are asked to contribute and add the necessary components from their stockpiles. Negotiations are already underway.
"We are negotiating with partners regarding the configuration of the Patriot system, including the training of Ukrainian crews. With our proposal and consultations with partner countries that provide several key parts and ammunition, we can provide Ukraine with at least one fully operational system in a short period of time," said the countryʼs Minister of Defense Kaisa Ollongren.
The Dutch government has said it is aware of the shortage of Patriot systems. However, it noted that Ukraine is also fighting for Europe and that Ukraineʼs military capabilities, energy production and vital infrastructure are under daily attack.
Dutch Defense Minister Kaisa Ollongren said that industrial suppliers had committed to speeding up the production and delivery of spare components.
- Since the beginning of the full-scale invasion of Russia in February 2022, Western countries have provided Ukraine with various air defense systems, all missiles can be shot down only by American Patriot air defense systems, of which the Ukrainian military has only three. At the end of February 2024, President Volodymyr Zelensky said that the transfer of ten Patriot air defense systems to Kyiv would radically change the situation in the war. In April, he said that Ukraine needs 25 Patriot systems to completely close the sky from air attacks. Minister of Foreign Affairs Dmytro Kuleba repeatedly called on foreign partners to transfer 5-7 Patriot systems to Ukraine and called this number the minimum necessary.