Poland says it has no spare Patriot missiles to give Ukraine

Poland has no spare missiles for Patriot systems that it could hand over to Ukraine. According to the PAP agency, Polish Foreign Minister Radosław Sikorski said: “Poland is not among the NATO countries that have a surplus of Patriot missiles. So it can only join the calls to other states to share them with Ukraine.”

Sikorski noted that the shortage of Patriot interceptors worsened after the strikes on Iran. “What's more, Russia is now producing more missiles. This is a real problem,” he said. Patriots are one of the most important elements of Ukraine's defence against Russian ballistic missiles, which other air defence systems struggle to intercept.

Pressure on Trump

The minister urged Polish President Karol Nawrocki to use his influence with US leader Donald Trump, if he has any: “Now is the time to use it.” According to Sikorski, the aim is to prevent a “Yalta II” scenario for Ukraine, that is, a new division of spheres of influence similar to the agreements made by the US, Britain and the USSR at the 1945 Yalta Conference.

Poland supports Trump's goal of ending Russia's war in Ukraine, but in Sikorski's view it would be more effective to put pressure on the aggressor, not on its victim. He also agreed with US Secretary of State Marco Rubio that the bill of the late Senator Lindsey Graham, which would allow Trump to impose high tariffs on major buyers of Russian oil and gas, should be put on hold for only 60 days.

What Kyiv says

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said on 15 October that Polish assistance, in particular supplies of ammunition for Ukrainian anti-aircraft weapons, helped protect Kyiv during recent attacks. He also hinted at another, more delicate form of support that is to remain confidential. According to Zelensky, the US is currently supplying only 12 Patriot missiles a month — roughly a quarter of what the administration of former President Joe Biden provided.

Source: novinky.cz