Ukraine has stopped publicly asking for high-end U.S. weapons. But that doesn't mean they don't want them. They're just getting savvier about their requests.
Ukraine has stopped publicly asking for high-end U.S. weapons such as Patriot air defense systems, F-16 fighter jets and Gray Eagle drones.
But there’s been a shift in recent weeks from loudly calling for air defense and fighter jets to quieter negotiations. The campaign to tone it down has been led by Zelenskyy’s advisers in Kyiv and key interlocutors in Washington, along with friendly advice from the Biden administration itself, which encouraged Kyiv to focus more intently on what it needs right now to push Russian forces out of entrenched positions in Ukraine’s east and south, the people said.
The concerns aren’t merely that the high-tech systems would be provocative to Moscow, but also that complex maintenance and support for the systems would challenge Ukraine in the middle of the war. In the case of Patriots, their relative scarcity makes supplying Ukraine a challenge. U.S. Army Patriot units are some of the most deployed units in the service, with allies across Europe, the Middle East and Pacific demanding the protection they provide.
“The NASAMS and Patriot are different systems and you’re training the same air defenders so there’s only so much they can do,” the staffer said, who like others in this story spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss the talks. “I think we’ll get there.”to Raytheon Technologies, using Ukraine Security Assistance Initiative funds, for NASAMS. The first two systems will be delivered within the next two months, the Pentagon said Friday.
To get there eventually, U.S. officials continue to discuss whether to send the Patriots to Ukraine as part of a long-term strategy, the people said. “For it to be used in anger, you’ve got to have a Russian missile or a Russian aircraft that has done the escalating, has come into range,” Karako said. “I would say it’s deescalatory.”
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