Zelenskyy Asks Trump for More US Air Defense Help Against Russian Missile Attacks, Kyiv Says
Zelenskyy says Ukraine needs more U.S. Patriot missiles as Russian strikes intensify and deliveries through the NATO-backed PURL program lag.
- On Wednesday, President Volodymyr Zelensky sent a letter to U.S. President Donald Trump and Congress requesting more American-made Patriot PAC-3 missiles and additional air defense systems to counter intensifying Russian ballistic missile attacks.
- Russian aerial attacks intensified dramatically after a massive overnight assault on May 24 launched 90 missiles and 600 drones, straining Ukraine's depleting stockpile of interceptors as Zelensky instructed Air Force Commander Mykola Oleshchuk on April 16 to urgently contact partner countries pledging Patriot missiles.
- Zelensky wrote that "for a nation fighting for its survival, there is hardly anything more painful to see than Patriot batteries with no missiles loaded," while Ukrainian officials fear the country's limited Patriot interceptor supply may struggle to withstand bombardments despite achieving more than 90% drone interception rates.
- Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov told U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio on May 25 that Moscow planned strikes on Ukrainian "decision-making centers" and urged Washington to evacuate the U.S. Embassy in Kyiv, while Washington declined to immediately comment on the Ukrainian letter.
- Zelensky's appeal reflects systemic challenges in the Prioritized Ukraine Requirements List weapons program, while Russia's approval on Tuesday of a plan allowing bank employees to operate drone defenses suggests Moscow's military air defenses are failing, analyst Thomas Withington of the Royal United Services Institute in London said.
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85 Articles
The Toronto Star
Zelenskyy asks Trump for more US air defense help against Russian missile attacks, Kyiv says
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has written to U.S. President Donald Trump and Congress asking for more American-made air defense ammunition to counter intensifying Russian ballistic missile attacks, Kyiv said Wednesday.
Zelenskyy asks U.S. for urgent air defence help
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy urged U.S. President Donald Trump to help Ukraine with air defence systems and interceptors as Russia threatens new strikes, saying that ballistic missiles remain Moscow's "last major advantage on the battlefield."
The petition comes days after one of the worst missile-combined attacks on Kiev since Russia invaded Ukraine more than four years ago
Zelensky pleads with Trump for additional Patriot missile systems as fears mount over more Russian strikes
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky pleaded with President Trump and Congress to marshal Patriot missile systems as his war-torn country braces for an expected bombardment from Russia.
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