French media: Germany plans to purchase Patriot air defense systems for Kyiv from the US
While the US has suspended the delivery of important weapons such as the Patriot air defense system to Ukraine, and Kyiv was subjected to a large-scale Russian air attack on Friday, the German government is planning to purchase the Patriot air defense system for Kyiv from the US.
The German government spokesperson said on Friday in response to questions from journalists about Russia's increased air attacks on Kyiv that there are multiple ways to fill the gap in Ukraine's lack of Patriot air defense systems, and Germany is considering purchasing this system for Ukraine from the US.
The spokesperson also stated that German Chancellor Scholz had a telephone conversation with US President Trump that day, specifically discussing how to effectively defend Ukrainian airspace.
The German government spokesperson emphasized that during Thursday and Friday, the massive Russian air raids on Kyiv made the issue of Ukraine's air defense very serious. The Ukrainian military said on Friday morning that Russia had launched 550 drones and missiles into Ukrainian territory overnight. The targets were mainly the capital Kyiv, as well as Dnipro, Sumy, Kharkiv, and Chernihiv regions. Twenty-three people were injured.
The spokesperson of the German Ministry of Defense stated that Defense Minister Pistorius will visit Washington in mid-July and "naturally will discuss this topic with his counterparts."
According to Ukrainian President Zelenskyy, he had a phone call with US President Trump on Friday, specifically discussing how to strengthen Ukraine's air defense against large-scale Russian air attacks. Zelenskyy said on the "Telegram" platform, "We discussed air defense plans and agreed to work together to strengthen the protection of Ukrainian airspace."
According to a report by the German newspaper Bild, Berlin has proposed to the US the purchase of two "Patriot" systems, and is currently waiting for a response from US Defense Secretary Austin.
Kyiv has been trying to purchase the US Patriot air defense system, but so far it has not succeeded. In mid-April, Ukrainian President Zelenskyy said that Ukraine is ready to purchase at least 10 such defense systems.
Since the beginning of Russia's large-scale invasion of Ukraine, the US has been Ukraine's main military supporter, but the US announced on Tuesday that it would suspend the delivery of certain essential weapons to Kyiv.
According to U.S. media reports, the affected equipment includes the "Patriot" anti-missile system, which Ukraine urgently needs to protect itself from Russian attacks.
According to analysts, the export cost of one "Patriot" battery is as high as $2.5 billion, and the export cost of each missile is as high as $1 million.
In the past three years, Ukraine has received several Patriot air defense systems provided by the US, Germany, the Netherlands, and Romania.
Source: rfi
Original: https://www.toutiao.com/article/1836757065214976/
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