What is the Patriot missile defense system Biden promised to Ukraine?
Misty Severi
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President Joe Biden promised to supply Ukraine with a Patriot missile defense system on Wednesday, which will help Ukraine defend itself against missiles from Russia.
The PATRIOT, which is short for Phased Array Tracking Radar for Intercept on Target, is a surface-to-air missile defense system that was built by Raytheon Technologies. It was first implemented in the Gulf War in 1991.
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The Patriot system is regarded as one of the best air defense systems that the United States owns, and it will aid Ukraine by intercepting incoming missiles and enemy aircraft. The Patriot systems have four operational functions: communications, command and control, radar surveillance, and missile interceptor guidance, according to a NATO fact sheet.
It is also capable of using two possible interceptors, including the PAC-2 interceptor, which triggers a blast-fragmentation warhead, and the PAC-3 missile, which is more advanced and hits a target more directly.
“This is a very important step to create a secure air space for Ukraine. That’s the only way we would be able to deprive [Russia] and their terror attack to strike our energy structure, our people,” Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said during a press conference with Biden.
Patriot systems cost the U.S. between $450 million and $550 million, and they usually come equipped with one radar unit, four to eight missile launching stations, a command and control center, and power and support vehicles, Brig. Gen. Pat Ryder, the Pentagon’s press secretary, told reporters.
“In terms of integration with other air defense systems, the Patriot will help Ukraine strengthen its layered, integrated approach to air defense,” Ryder said. “In addition to Ukraine’s own legacy capabilities such as the S-300, PATRIOT will complement a range of medium- and short-range air defense capabilities that the U.S. and our international allies and partners have provided to Ukraine.”
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The technology will arrive in Ukraine in the next few months. But first, it will be sent to Germany, where the U.S. military will train Ukrainians on how to operate the new defense system. U.S. forces have been training Ukrainians in Germany since 2015, but they have revitalized the training after Russia invaded Ukraine. The first Ukrainian forces trained on U.S.-based weapon systems since the war began returned to Ukraine in May. Roughly 3,000 Ukrainian soldiers are being trained in Germany now.
The recently passed National Defense Authorization Act also includes an additional $45 billion in security aid to Ukraine.
Raytheon has built more than 240 Patriot systems so far, which are used by 18 countries, including the U.S.