Ukraine’s scramble to secure critical air defenses stalls

BRUSSELS — Ukraine is racing to protect its skies from Russian missiles, but it’s running out of options — and money — to source new interceptors. Kyiv has launched a fresh campaign asking Western partners for air defense equipment and cash amid growing fears that Moscow will dramatically ramp up its missile attacks this winter. But a series of meetings this week — from an informal gathering of EU defense ministers to a special meeting of NATO ambassadors — all came up empty. Countries with stocks of PAC-2 and PAC-3 interceptors for U.S.-made Patriots — ranging from Greece and Spain to Japan and South Korea — are hanging on to their own supplies and balking at giving them to Kyiv. Despite Ukraine’s efforts to get more cash for defense purchases, there is a global squeeze on interceptors as the U.S. is scrambling to rebuild its own stocks after firing hundreds of missiles against Iran. The production of missile interceptors for Patriots and rival systems is also backlogged. Ukraine’s inability to beef up its air defenses comes as Moscow last week said it was preparing “massive strikes” against Kyiv’s energy infrastructure, with Ukrainian cities already struggling to intercept Russia’s daily missile barrage. Meanwhile, Ukrainian intelligence has warned the Kremlin is eyeing up new ground offensives. “I’m really — for the first time in the last five years — afraid of what [Russia] can achieve in these couple months,” said Solomiia Bobrovska, a lawmaker with the opposition Holos party who sits on the Ukrainian parliament’s defense committee. Kyiv is growing increasingly annoyed at dwindling transfers of critical weapons. “We are grateful to our partners,” said a senior Ukrainian government official, who was granted anonymity to speak freely. But “it’s an endless, frustrating saga when you have to beg for every single unit” that is delivered. Out of stocks With Kyiv’s stocks of Patriots effectively at zero, the Ukrainian government official explained, NATO’s PURL scheme — where allied countries buy critical U.S. arms — remains the “only credible source” of Patriots. In July, Kyiv said 95 percent of its stock arrived through that program. However, that amounts to roughly “10 to 20 missiles per month,” said Dmytro Zhmailo, a military expert and deputy head of the Ukrainian Security and Cooperation Centre think tank, far short of what Kyiv needs given Russia fired 195 missiles in July alone. Adding to Ukraine’s air defense problems, Russia is increasingly deploying upgraded jet-powered Shahed drones which fly faster and lower, making them difficult to shoot down, Zhmailo said. Kyiv is testing four prototypes to tackle the new drones, but for now it relies on limited stocks of expensive anti-aircraft missiles and artillery systems, he added. “Ukraine has manufacturers capable of carrying out this task,” Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said in a social media post on Thursday. “Prototypes have been developed, and work is underway to bring this new weapon to the required level of effectiveness.” Out of options Kyiv this week shared its three broad priorities with European countries, the Ukrainian official said, including air defense equipment, investments in the country’s drone and missile production and long-range artillery. Zelenskyy has said Kyiv needs 300 Patriot interceptors to get through the winter. But more broadly, it also wants AMRAAM, IRIS-T and AIM-9X air-to-air missiles, as well as HAWK systems that are particularly effective against jet-powered drones, the official said. Germany, which is hosting a virtual meeting of European countries to drum up support for more aid on Sept. 8, is expected to announce the delivery of new IRIS-T air defense missiles this month. France and Italy have also promised to supply Kyiv with Aster 30 interceptor missiles by October. Five of the seven EU countries known to deploy Patriot systems — Germany, Poland, Romania, Spain and the Netherlands — have so far a