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European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte have welcomed the authorization for Ukraine to purchase critical components for Patriot air defense systems.
The Operative Information Center-OMM reports that von der Leyen shared the statement on her account on the social media platform X.
According to her, the next €3.2 billion tranche allocated to Ukraine will enable the country to better protect its airspace from Russian attacks.
The European Commission president said the funding supplements the €8.4 billion already allocated under the Ukraine Support Loan Cooperation mechanism. Part of that money is expected to be directed toward air defense needs.
Von der Leyen stressed that the European Union and NATO would continue working closely to support Ukraine and strengthen Europe’s defense capabilities.
Earlier, the United Kingdom announced that it would provide Ukraine with air defense equipment worth £100 million, including missiles for Patriot surface-to-air missile systems.
London also said it would send Kyiv tens of thousands of long-range artillery shells in the coming months.
The Patriot system is an advanced surface-to-air missile platform designed to detect and intercept aircraft and ballistic missiles. European countries and NATO members have continued coordinating military assistance to Ukraine as it seeks to strengthen protection against Russian missile and drone attacks.
