President Joe Biden announced an agreement with the US, Germany, the Netherlands, Romania, and Italy to provide additional air defense systems for Ukraine at NATO’s 75th anniversary summit in Washington D.C. The equipment includes strategic and tactical air defense systems to help Ukraine thwart Russian missile attacks. The US, Germany, and Romania will donate Patriot batteries, the Netherlands will donate Patriot components, and Italy will donate a SAMP-T system. The five countries intend to announce further cooperation on air defense systems for Ukraine this year.
The US and its allies plan to provide Ukraine with dozens of tactical air defense systems, including NASAMS, HAWKs, IRIS T-SLM, IRIS T-SLS, and Gepard systems. Biden’s announcement comes after moving Ukraine up to the front of the queue for Patriot and NASAM interceptors, ensuring hundreds of additional interceptors to protect Ukrainian cities and troops facing Russian attacks. Ukraine will receive interceptors by the end of the summer and will be prioritized over other countries seeking US air defense systems for the next 15 months.
The announcement comes after a Russian missile attack on Ukraine’s largest children’s hospital, killing at least 31 people and wounding over 150. NATO members are expected to announce additional security packages for Ukraine at the summit. Biden emphasized the global coalition supporting Ukraine and the bilateral security agreement signed by the US and nearly two dozen allied partners with Ukraine.
