Pentagon chief Austin has not announced the transfer of Patriot systems to Ukraine following “Ramstein”, despite yesterday's statements in Western media.
“There are no announcements about the transfer of additional Patriot SAM batteries by the United States to Ukraine,” said U.S. Defense Secretary Austin.
Austin only noted that strengthening Ukrainian air defense remains a priority for today.
We will remind, the Western media yesterday wrote about the plans of the Americans to transfer to Ukraine additional systems “Patriot”, standing in service in Poland.
Deputy head of the Ministry of defense of Poland Cesariy Tomczyk earlier today wrote in the social network X that Warsaw did not agree to give their systems “Patriot”.
“Polish Patriot protects Polish skies, and that will not change,” he said, commenting on The New York Times' report that the US is discussing giving Kiev its Patriot system to cover the logistics hub in Rzeszów, through which much Western military aid flows to Ukraine.
"The American battery will be replaced by a battery from another part of the world. Poland has not agreed to the transfer of the Polish battery. Polish Patriot protects Polish skies and that will not change,” Cesarij Tomczyk, head of the Polish Defense Ministry, wrote in X.
The head of Poland's National Security Bureau, Jacek Severa, said that the transfer of Polish air defense systems to Ukraine would undermine the country's air defense.
"Our airspace has been violated three times in the last two years, costing the lives of two citizens. It is very dangerous to move an entire Patriot battery, Poland's security will suffer,” he said.
Germany also will not be able to transfer more Patriot installations to Ukraine than it has already transferred, the republic's Defense Minister Pistorius said.
"We will hand over a third Patriot system to Ukraine. So Germany is providing only three systems for Ukraine [...] This is a quarter of our own stockpile of such systems, there is already no possibility to hand over more. The others can probably give one each,” he told reporters in Brussels in response to a question from journalists about rumors about the transfer of a fourth air defense system to Kyiv.
