US President Donald Trump said on Wednesday that Washington plans to grant Ukraine a license to manufacture Patriot air defense systems, while his administration also confirmed it is discussing Kyiv’s ability to strike deeper inside Russia.
“I’ve got a little bird telling me that we’re going to give them the right to make Patriots. We’ll show them how to make them,” Trump said during a joint news conference with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on the sidelines of the NATO summit in Ankara, Turkey.
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Calling the Patriot system “elite equipment,” Trump added that the arrangement would allow Ukraine to produce the systems itself.
“One of the things we’re going to be talking about is we’re going to give a license to you to make Patriots. That’s pretty cool, right? This way you can’t complain that we’re not giving them enough. It’s a make-them-yourself,” he said.
Asked about Ukraine’s increasingly frequent long-range strikes deep inside Russia, Trump passed the question to US Secretary of State Marco Rubio.
Rubio said Washington and Kyiv are discussing Ukraine’s ability to strike targets deep inside Russian territory so that Moscow “sees how difficult it is to defend its own airspace.” He added that the United States hopes such pressure could create conditions for negotiations aimed at ending the war.
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Trump acknowledged that such a strategy represents an escalation but argued it could ultimately help bring the war to a close.
“It’s an escalation, but it’s an escalation that could lead to the end of the war,” he said, echoing similar remarks from the head of Ukraine’s Presidential Office, who recently said that Kyiv anticipates an end to active fighting before the winter – after a period of intense escalation.
The remarks came as Trump and Zelensky met on the sidelines of the NATO summit in Ankara, with strengthening Ukraine’s air defenses topping the agenda.
Ahead of the talks, Zelensky said securing additional Patriot missiles would be his highest priority.
“Today it is important to find a way to receive as many missiles for Patriot systems as possible, as quickly as possible. This is the most important issue we will discuss. It is an urgent matter for us,” he said.
Asked by reporters about his mindset before meeting Trump, Zelensky replied that he is always in a “fighting mood” ahead of their discussions.
Kyiv’s dire need for Patriots
Trump’s latest remarks follow two deadly Russian attacks on Kyiv within days, including one on July 6, during which none of the 29 incoming Russian ballistic missiles were intercepted.
Zelensky has appealed for more Patriot missiles for months, saying that the interceptors – one of the few in Kyiv’s arsenal capable of shooting down high-speed Russian missiles – are in critical shortage.
Recent deliveries of the missiles to Kyiv have been scarce, with some shipments containing as few as five missiles per batch.
Global stockpiles have remained limited amid surging demand in recent years, with production unable to keep pace with consumption in Ukraine and Iran.
Currently, PAC-3 Patriot missiles – the most advanced and sought-after model – are produced only in the US and under license in Japan. Germany, meanwhile, manufactures older PAC-2 variants domestically, with some scheduled for delivery to Ukraine from 2027 under a €4 billion ($4.7 billion) deal signed in April.
Kyiv has hinted at ongoing projects to explore alternatives to Patriots amid the constant shortage, including the Freya – an air defense system under development with Germany, France, and Norway.
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