Ukraine may not receive Patriots announced by Trump until spring 2026 – media

The Patriot air defense systems that U.S. President Donald Trump promised to transfer to Ukraine may be transferred to the Ukrainian side no earlier than in eight months, the German publication Spiegel reports.

"The rapid delivery of equipment to Ukraine is proving difficult, even after Trump announced last week in the Oval Office in the presence of NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte that he would send Ukraine a whole range of weapons, including the Patriots, which Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy so urgently requested," the publication said.

German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius on Tuesday called the situation "not hopeless," but noted that the prerequisite is "that the countries that have them are ready to transfer them now, so that others can pay for them, and they can get to Ukraine." Since, as it later turned out, the United States' idea is that European allies will transfer the systems from their military stocks and receive a replacement later, moving up the supply chain by the American manufacturer RTX Corporation.

"According to government sources, the first system will not be available for at least eight months; then Germany may receive the battery that was originally supposed to go to Switzerland. The delivery of all the others will take even longer," the publication said.

It is noted that the foundations were to be laid at a virtual meeting of the Ukraine Defense Contact Group, which Pistorius and his British counterpart John Healey co-chaired on Monday.

"We expect NATO to again appeal to the United States and make it clear to the manufacturer of the Patriot systems that countries that transfer their systems must be provided with new systems within a few months," Pistorius said.

In addition to Germany, other countries such as Norway, Sweden and the Netherlands have also expressed their willingness to finance the transfer of Patriot systems to Ukraine, Pistorius said. However, "a decision has not yet been made on which country can supply Patriot systems to Ukraine."

Overall, the supporting countries want to identify up to five systems that could be transferred to Ukraine. This is an "ambitious initiative," Pistorius said. It is important that "the countries transferring the systems can continue to meet NATO requirements and that there are no security gaps for NATO."

Senior military officials from the countries supporting the initiative must now figure out how this can be achieved. According to available information, the meeting will not be chaired by NATO's Supreme Allied Commander Europe, U.S. Air Force General Alexus Grynkewich, as initially announced, but by German General Markus Laubenthal, Chief of Staff of NATO Headquarters in Mons, Belgium. Their task is to determine which supporting country is most likely to hand over the Patriot systems and under what conditions.

The results will then be presented again to ministers. Pistorius said that "a proposal should be put forward that can gain majority support, takes into account the commitments made to NATO and does not endanger our own security." He also made it clear that this may require further concessions from the United States.

"We expect NATO to reach out again to the United States and make it clear to the manufacturer of the Patriot systems that the countries that hand over their systems must be supplied with new systems within a few months," Pistorius said.

This commitment should also be "unbreakable." He added that he also "held intensive talks with the management of the U.S. manufacturer last week and insisted on further acceleration of production and deliveries."

Pistorius has repeatedly made it clear that the Bundeswehr can only transfer additional Patriot systems from its arsenal to Ukraine if Germany immediately receives new systems from the United States.

"It's a matter of months, not years," he said.

Six to eight months is the maximum period that Germany can handle, he explained in Erding.

The most important thing is that Germany can meet its obligations to NATO and "no serious gaps are created that would threaten our security and the security of our allies," Pistorius said.

"It’s not just about the current operational capabilities of our air defense. It's also about being able to conduct continuous training using Patriot systems, which requires a minimum number of systems," the minister said.

Otherwise, the Bundeswehr risks not having enough personnel to operate the additional Patriot systems once they are delivered. The Bundeswehr has ordered eight more Patriot systems from the United States. Of the 12 squadrons it once had, it has already delivered three to Ukraine. Two more are stationed in southeastern Poland to protect Rzeszow airport. At least one system is usually needed for training, which Germany has also provided to Ukrainian soldiers.