The US does not want to transfer Patriot secrets to Ukraine: Trump gave the reason
фото: Reuters
US President Donald Trump has rejected the idea of transferring secret technologies to Ukraine needed to independently produce interceptor missiles for the Patriot systems. Washington fears that Russia could eventually gain access to American developments.
This is reported by The Telegraph.
A few weeks ago, the prospect of transferring the corresponding license to Ukraine looked much more realistic. During the July NATO summit in Ankara, Trump, according to the publication, assured Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky that the United States could allow Ukrainian enterprises to produce Patriot missiles. The American president then assumed that production could be launched quite quickly.
However, Trump’s position later changed. During a cabinet meeting at Camp David, he expressed doubts about transferring such a level of technology to Ukraine.
“It’s a delicate matter to give away technology of this level… The people you give it to could one day turn against you,” Trump said.
According to The Telegraph, one of the main points of contention within the US administration has been the technology associated with the radar for the Patriot interceptor missile. This is a component about eight inches in diameter, which is manufactured by Boeing in Alabama.
This system is responsible for detecting a target in the final leg of its flight and guiding the interceptor missile to the target. It is because of the sensitivity of such technologies that the US restricts their export, even to some allies.
For Ukraine, the issue of Patriot missile supplies is particularly important as Russia prepares for a new campaign of strikes on energy infrastructure in the winter. The Ukrainian side needs a significant number of interceptors to protect cities and critical facilities from Russian ballistic missiles.
According to Ukrainian officials, Ukraine may need at least 300 interceptor missiles to get through the winter. However, the possibility of obtaining such a number of missiles from partners or establishing their production in Ukraine remains uncertain.
Thus, Washington’s decision could become a serious problem for Ukraine, as its own production of Patriot missiles would allow it to reduce its dependence on American supplies in the future. At the same time, the United States fears that the transfer of the most sensitive technologies would create a risk of their leakage to Russia.
Recall that the manufacturers of the American Patriot air defense system may officially justify their concerns about the transfer of technology to Ukraine by the risks of intellectual property theft, but their real concern may be related to the potential of Ukrainian production. Ukrainian specialists can improve Patriot and in the future produce systems on a large scale faster and cheaper than they do on American production lines.
As reported this morning, Ukraine has not yet received a license to produce interceptor missiles for Patriot systems . The US stated that negotiations are ongoing, but they will not have time to complete them and conclude a corresponding agreement before the beginning of winter.
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