The German Federal Ministry of Defence announced on 1 August 2025 that in the following days it will deliver two additional Patriot air defence system launchers to Ukraine, with complete system elements to follow in the next two to three months.
In return, an agreement has been reached with the US Department of Defense (DoD) that Germany will be the first nation to receive newly produced, latest-generation Patriot systems at an accelerated pace, with the financing for these provided by Germany.
The move is a result of the US President Donald Trump announcing on 14 July 2025 that the United States would approve the transfer of both defensive and offensive weapons to Ukraine as long as NATO nations paid for them.
“Germany has always been willing to provide Patriot system components in support of Ukraine,” stated German Defence Minister Boris Pistorius. “The prerequisite was that the US manufacturer would deliver new Patriot systems to us as quickly as possible so we can continue to meet our NATO obligations. That commitment from the US side has been secured.”
“Highly efficient air defence systems like the Patriot system are in short supply, and the production of some components takes years. Germany has already delivered three systems to Ukraine, which play an important role in Ukraine’s air defence,” the German Federal Ministry of Defence stated.
“With the solution now agreed upon, Germany is taking the lead to quickly meet Ukraine’s currently very urgent needs. We are once again taking the lead and are combining this delivery with an appeal to our partners to promptly provide additional systems,” the ministry added.
In recent weeks Russia has intensified its aerial attacks on Ukrainian cities with both missiles and bomb-laden unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs). On 31 July, for example, an aerial attack on Kyiv killed at least 31 people and injured around 159. That attack involved more than 300 UAVs and eight cruise missiles, according to Ukraine’s air force.
German soldiers assigned to Surface Air and Missile Defense Wing 1 fire a Patriot air defence system at the NATO Missile Firing Installation during Exercise ‘Artemis Strike’ in Chania, Greece, on 7 November 2017. Germany will soon have supplied five Patriot air defence systems to Ukraine. [Bundeswehr]