Zelenskyy says Trump is "positive" about granting licences for Patriot missiles

Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has said US President Donald Trump is "positive" about granting Ukraine licences for the production of Patriot missiles.

Source: European Pravda, citing Zelenskyy during a Q&A with journalists following his meeting with Trump

Details: Zelenskyy revealed that he has asked the American leader to accelerate the process of Patriot missile production being established in Ukraine. "We have asked the president to help us to move this quicker. He's positive with licences," stated Zelenskyy.

He noted that the Ukrainian side had held talks with Patriot air defence systems manufacturer RTX (Raytheon), which had signalled its willingness to cooperate.

According to Zelenskyy, launching the production of Patriot systems in Ukraine could take about a year to a year and a half. "We will start this project. But again, I don't know it could be one year, one year and a half, but it's for the future, in any way it's for the future, for Ukraine, for Ukrainians. We have Patriot systems, we will need our production of such missiles, even when we produce our anti-ballistic system, but in any way we count also on Patriots," said the president.

Background:

• On 31 July, Trump said that the US has to be "very careful" regarding the possibility of allowing Ukraine to produce interceptor missiles for Patriot air defence systems.
• The FT also learned that Trump declined Zelenskyy's request for hundreds of additional interceptor missiles for the Patriot air defence system during a meeting at the White House at the end of July, adding that the missiles were needed to protect American facilities in the Middle East.

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