US President Donald Trump's agreement to grant a license for Patriot air defense systems has given the green light for the start of domestic production in Ukraine. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy stressed that his country must take urgent steps following this development.
Speaking to journalists while returning from the NATO summit in Turkey, Zelenskyy said that political approval was obtained during his meeting with Trump in Ankara. "We have resolved this politically," Zelenskyy said. "Now our teams, diplomats, foreign and defense ministries must decide on all remaining technical details. The sooner we make these agreements, the sooner we can produce Patriots."
At a joint press conference in Ankara, Trump told Zelenskyy, "We will give you a license to produce Patriots. So you can't complain that we don't give enough."
Zelenskyy noted that his meeting with Trump was successful and that agreements were also reached with European allies. "This was a productive summit for Ukraine. In the coming days, we will receive a package from the US, and there were also some separate agreements," the Ukrainian leader said, implying that more PAC-3 interceptors had been secured.
Time barrier for production
However, Serhii Beskrestnov, an adviser to Ukraine's defense minister, warned that setting up domestic production facilities would take months. In a statement on his Telegram channel, Beskrestnov said the production license would come with technical process documentation, expert training, supplier connections, and foreign consultants, but the main obstacle was time, noting that the production cycle for some subcontractor components could take 12 to 24 months.
The Patriot is a US-made air defense system. The PAC-3 interceptor is one of the few Western weapons capable of shooting down the ballistic missiles that Russia is increasingly firing at Ukrainian cities. As global stocks dwindle, Ukraine is consuming interceptors faster than they are produced in the US.
During the NATO summit, Trump made a sharp turnaround from his past criticism of the Ukrainian leader, telling Zelenskyy he was "doing a great job." Trump stressed that he remains determined to facilitate a peace agreement between Russia and Ukraine.
