NATO could supply Patriot air defense systems to Ukraine. Medvedev: They will become the target of the Russian army

Medvedev said

If NATO countries nevertheless hand over the American Patriot anti-aircraft missile systems to Ukraine, then they will immediately become the target of Russian attacks. About declaration Dmitry Medvedev, former President of Russia and Deputy Chairman of the country’s Security Council.

“If, as Stoltenberg implies, NATO supplies the Kyiv fanatics with Patriot complexes as well as NATO personnel, they will immediately become legitimate targets of our armed forces,” Medvedev wrote.

At the same time, the vice-chairman of the Security Council expressed hope that the “Atlantic helpless”, that is, representatives of the North Atlantic alliance, would understand this.

Earlier on 29 November, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said that after the results of the first day of the summit of the foreign ministers of the alliance member countries, the attendees discussed the possibility of transferring the Patriot complexes to Kiev.

“Our discussions are about how to get new systems like the Patriot, for example, and now there’s a discussion about that. But this also applies to ensuring that systems that have already been delivered are up and running,” Stoltenberg said.

What does Kyiv require?

Later, Latvian Foreign Minister Edgars Rinkevics said that Kiev “should be allowed” to attack missile bases targeting Ukraine’s critical infrastructure without fear of escalating the conflict with Russia.

Kyiv has been asking its Western partners for several months to deliver more powerful missile defense systems, including Patriot air defense systems. Earlier on Tuesday, Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmitry Kuleba said that at the upcoming NATO summit, he plans to request new air and missile defense systems from the West, as well as parts to repair damaged energy infrastructure.

“I will have two important messages at the meetings in Bucharest and Lodz: “Patriots” and converters,” Kuleba said. According to him, it is now critical that Ukraine be able to defend against further missile attacks and restore its energy capacity.

A day ago, Stoltenberg expressed his hope that after the NATO summit in Bucharest, the alliance could increase the supply of weapons to Ukraine, and in particular air defense systems.

“I hope that one of the messages to be delivered after the meeting of the foreign ministers here in Bucharest will be the need to further increase the supply of spare parts and ammunition for both air defense systems and various air defense systems. training for their use,” said the general secretary.

The debate over the supply of Patriot air defense systems to Kiev intensified after the massive attacks of the Russian Armed Forces on Ukrainian energy infrastructure facilities and the subsequent power outage in the country. Controversy has also flared up when a missile from the Ukrainian S-300 air defense system crashed into a local grain dryer in Pszewoduv, Poland, killing two farmers. Then Yaroslav Kaczynski, head of the Polish Law and Justice party, suggested that the FRG send Patriot anti-aircraft missile systems to Ukraine, not Poland. In Berlin, they said they wanted these missile defense systems to remain on NATO territory.

what is patriot

Patriot is an American anti-aircraft missile system in service with the United States and later other NATO countries since the early 1980s. It is a universal air defense vehicle for medium and high altitudes.

The Patriot is called a “hydraulic garbage truck” by NATO troops because of its characteristic appearance. The launcher is a self-contained, remote-controlled device that can rotate anti-aircraft guided missiles in a container 220 degrees relative to its longitudinal axis. The chassis may be different: Kenworth tractors are used in the USA, MAN tractors are used in Germany, JINAF trucks are used in the Netherlands.

Now, as a rule, Patriot air defense systems of the latest PAC-3 modification are in service with NATO countries. They can be guaranteed to hit ballistic targets – eg missiles – at an altitude of 15 km. There are reports of hitting targets at an altitude of 20 km. Also, the Patriot cannot hit targets flying faster than 1600 m/s (5760 km/h).

Patriot is an expensive complex, both in terms of cost and maintenance. A battery of four launchers costs $1 billion, and a launch costs around $3 million.