Nato allies pledge additional air defence systems for Ukraine, Stoltenberg says

BRUSSELS – Nato allies on April 19 agreed to provide Kyiv with additional air defence systems, Nato chief Jens Stoltenberg said after a special meeting of allied defence ministers with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.

“In addition to Patriots, there are other weapons that allies can provide, including (the French system) SAMP/T, and many others, who do not have available systems, have pledged to provide financial support to purchase them for Ukraine,” Mr Stoltenberg told reporters in Brussels.

Mr Zelensky asked for the meeting, which was held online,

as his country is facing a shortage of ammunition, with vital funding from the US blocked by Republicans in Congress for months and the European Union failing to deliver munitions on time.

Mr Stoltenberg did not go into detail on

how many new air defence systems Ukraine will receive,

but said he expected fresh announcements in the coming days.

“Help is on its way. And I expect more help and support to be announced in the very near future,” he told reporters.

Last week,

Germany pledged to supply Kyiv with a third Patriot battery

out of its military stocks.

The US has the highest number of Patriot systems in its inventories.

In Europe, nations such as Spain and Greece own Patriot batteries. REUTERS