Washington, June 12: US President Joe Biden is planning to make another Patriot air defence system available to Ukraine to fend off Russian aerial attacks, the media reported, citing unnamed US government sources. Biden took the decision following several high level meetings last week, the New York Times reported on Tuesday. John Kirby, the Communications Director of the US National Security Council, did not confirm the report when asked about it.
According to the New York Times, the system in question is in Poland and could be deployed to the front line in Ukraine within days. If confirmed it would be the second US-made Patriot system provided to Kiev by Washington.
Biden gave the go ahead for the first system nearly 18 months ago when Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky travelled to the US for the first time following Russia's full scale invasion of Ukraine to address the US Congress. The US has also been supplying Ukraine with Patriot missiles.
The Patriot is considered one of the most advanced air defence missile systems in modern warfare. It can be used to combat enemy aircraft, ballistic missiles and cruise missiles. The defence missiles can hit targets at a distance of around 100 km at altitudes of up to 30 km. Germany has also provided Ukraine with two such systems and pledged to send another one.
Zelensky, who was in Berlin on Tuesday to attend a conference for the reconstruction of Ukraine, also paid a visit to Ukrainian soldiers currently being trained in Germany to use the Patriot.
