The Netherlands and Romania give Patriot missiles to Ukraine

According to the report of the international group Tasnim news agency quoting “Spiegel” weekly, at the end of May, the Dutch government announced that it wants to assemble a Patriot air defense system for Ukraine from different parts. At the time, it was said that “core elements” could be provided, and European partner countries were being sought to supply additional parts. He told ANP news agency on Friday that the project has now been successful and it has become possible to create a complete complex. The country that helped build the Patriot battery was not named. Ollongren said that the announcement is related to the local government.

Air defense is one of the most important issues for Ukraine in this war, to be able to defend from the air against continuous Russian attacks. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy calculated in April that Ukraine needs 25 Patriot air defense systems to protect its airspace from Russian missile and drone attacks.

He announced that he specifically wants seven Patriot systems from NATO member countries so that he can better defend his country. However, NATO is struggling to coordinate the issue ahead of its July 9-11 summit in Washington, diplomats said, even though NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg has promised that most of NATO’s commitments will be made in a matter of days or so. to be done next week.

Germany and the United States have already delivered two Patriot systems to Ukraine. According to a report in the New York Times, Germany has made another promise, and the United States is about to offer another. Romania also announced on Thursday that it will deliver its only Patriot unit to Ukraine.

Romanian President Klaus Iohannis met with US President Joe Biden at the beginning May warned that it is unacceptable to leave Romanians without air defense equipment.

Romania shares a 650 km border with Ukraine. In 2017, the country ordered seven Patriot batteries for $4 billion (€3.7 billion at today’s rates), a purchase on an unprecedented scale. To date, Romania has received four systems, but not all of them are operational yet.

The American Patriot air defense system is one of the most modern air defense systems in the world. . Patriot missiles can engage enemy aircraft, ballistic missiles and cruise missiles at a distance of 100 km and up to an altitude of 30 km. The Patriot system first uses radar to classify which flying objects in the sky belong to the enemy. In the event of a threat, soldiers in the control center fire guided missiles to neutralize the targets. In Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, the German army is currently training Ukrainian soldiers for this purpose.

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