Trump: "Ukrainians want Patriots, but we need them too"

US President Donald Trump has promised to check whether it is possible to provide Ukraine with additional Patriot air defence systems, but he stressed that the United States needs them too.

Source: Trump at a press conference following the NATO summit in The Hague on 25 June, as reported by European Pravda

Details: Trump was responding to a question from a Ukrainian journalist who asked whether the US was prepared to sell Patriot systems to Ukraine. The president first asked whether she lived in Ukraine. The journalist replied that she was currently living abroad with her children, while her husband remained in Ukraine. Trump then asked whether her husband was serving as a soldier and was on the front line. Upon being told that he was, the president said, "Well, that's rough stuff, right?" before moving on to the question itself. He stressed, however, that the US also needs a weapon as effective as the Patriot system.

Quote: "They [the Ukrainians – ed.] do want to have the anti-missiles, as they call them… the Patriots. And we’re going to see if we can make some available. They’re very hard to get. We need them too. We were supplying them to Israel, and they’re very effective. A hundred percent effective – hard to believe how effective."

Details: Finally Trump said to the journalist: "I wish you a lot of luck. I can see it’s very upsetting to you. Say hello to your husband, okay?"

Background:

• Over the past few months, Ukraine has offered to purchase several Patriot anti-aircraft missile systems from the US to defend against large-scale Russian missile attacks.
• Earlier this month, the Ukrainian side handed US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent a list of the weapons Ukraine needs, including items that Ukraine is prepared to buy from the United States.
• Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has previously said that he intended to discuss the purchase of a new defence package with Trump.

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