UK commits £100m to strengthen Ukraine’s air defences over winter
The package includes Patriot missiles, defence interceptors, artillery rounds and drones, to be supplied through Nato’s prioritised requirements list.
The United Kingdom has committed £100 million in military equipment to strengthen Ukraine’s air defences over winter, including Patriot missiles, defence interceptors, large-calibre artillery rounds and drones.
The equipment will be supplied through Nato’s prioritised Ukraine requirements list. Patriot missiles can be used against aircraft, cruise missiles and tactical ballistic missiles, but the commitment does not specify quantities or a delivery timetable.
The Guardian reported that supplies of the defence system have dwindled amid Russian attacks. Military experts have linked shortages of Patriot missiles to a decline in interception rates, although the extent of that impact was not specified.
UK Defence Secretary Wes Streeting is due to co-chair his first meeting of the Ukraine Defence Contact Group with German Defence Minister Boris Pistorius. The group comprises about 50 countries providing military equipment to Kyiv.
The UK has also agreed to declassify blueprints for British-made components for the Scalp missile, a French-produced version of Storm Shadow that has been used to hit targets in Russia.
The announcement comes as US envoys pursue talks aimed at ending the conflict. Those discussions were described as encouraging but produced no breakthrough, while Ukraine’s president, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, said the war appeared likely to continue into winter.
