Air defense and missiles under threat: US delays could hit Ukraine

The US began to delay arms deliveries to its European allies, even for weapons under contracts that had already been signed and paid for. The reason was that its own stockpiles were rapidly dwindling amid several conflicts at once.

Reuters reports this.

This is the Foreign Military Sales program, through which countries buy American weapons. Now, supplies are slowing down, and this is already causing concern in Europe.

The Baltic and Scandinavian countries, which are close to Russia, are most concerned. For them, quickly receiving weapons is a security issue. In addition, some of this weapons were supposed to go to support Ukraine, so delays could also affect the situation on the front.

The problem has been building for months. First, the US actively helped Ukraine, then Israel. And after the escalation of the confrontation with Iran, the burden on military supplies became even greater.

The biggest shortage now is in air defense systems, in particular Patriot missiles, which are actively used in various regions.

Against this backdrop, Europe is increasingly talking about the need to develop its own defense production in order to be less dependent on the U.S. In turn, Washington is hinting that allies could more actively support American actions in the Middle East.

The situation shows that even the closest partners are not immune to delays if resources begin to run out.

As a reminder, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said that a US and Israeli war against Iran could further weaken American support for Kyiv.

President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said on Tuesday that Ukraine has a significant shortage of Patriot missiles, describing the shortage as “the worst it could be.”

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