Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy told reporters Friday that his country’s allies in Europe have enough missile and drone interceptors to help Ukraine get through the winter, amid reports that his country had completely run out of U.S.-made interceptors.
He added that it is unclear how many interceptors Ukraine could get from Europe and that Kyiv’s current requests are the “bare minimum” needed to defend critical infrastructure against Russian attacks.
Mr. Zelenskyy indicated that Ukraine was looking to rely less on foreign-made defensive technologies, saying the focus is to produce a new defense system that is cheaper and could be shared with Europe.
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The comments came after Mr. Zelenskyy met with European leaders at a European Union meeting in Brussels on Friday.
CNN had reported earlier this week that Ukraine had effectively run out of U.S.-made Patriot interceptor missiles, leaving the country vulnerable to further Russian attacks. The development is especially worrisome for Kyiv as the country prepares for another harsh winter and Russia increases its attacks on Ukraine’s energy grid.
Ukraine has, in turn, launched attacks on Russian oil refineries, which has reportedly frustrated the White House as President Trump looks to keep oil and gas prices down ahead of the November elections.
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