Zelenskyy: Ukrainian Cities Left Defenseless as Patriot Missile Stocks Depleted

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy stated during a February 19 press conference that the country lacks both enough missiles for its Patriot systems and air defense systems overall.

“They said no troops in Ukraine, but they have warships and air defense systems. The U.S. has these air defense systems. Can we get 20 of them? That would be enough. We don’t need maintenance for them—we have our own specialists and will train them. Can we get licenses? Not even missiles, just licenses to produce Patriot missiles,” Zelenskyy said.

The President emphasized that Ukrainian cities do not have enough missiles to intercept Russian missiles.

“Every day […] at 3–5 a.m., a commander calls me and says, 'We are near this city, that city and we have no missiles left for the Patriot systems. We’ve exhausted them.' He tells me that eight enemy missiles are approaching, but we have nothing to intercept them,” the President explained.

“I think this is wrong. These are the things that make everyone anxious,” he added.

On February 18, U.S. intelligence sources cited by NBC stated that Russian leader Vladimir Putin is not genuinely interested in peace negotiations with Ukraine but instead sees them as a tactical maneuver to further his military objectives.