Romania to consider transferring Patriot surface-to-air missile system to Ukraine

The Romanian government is ready to discuss with its partners the transfer of Patriot air defence systems to Ukraine.

Here's What We Know

This was announced by Romanian President Klaus Iohannis during a briefing with journalists after a meeting with US President Joe Biden on 7 May.

""President Biden mentioned it ... in our meeting and I said I was open to discussion. I must discuss it in the Supreme Defence Council to see what we can offer and what we can get in return, because it is unacceptable to leave Romania without air defences," Iohannis said."

Incidentally, Romania now has one Patriot battery in service. Apart from Romania, other European countries are also armed with American SAMs. For example, Greece, Poland and Sweden.

Flashback

Patriot is an air defence missile system developed by the American company Raytheon. It consists of an air interception missile and a high-performance radar system. The probability of hitting an aircraft is 0.8-0.9, while the probability of hitting a tactical missile is 0.6-0.8. The cost of one missile is about $3 million. Ukraine now has three batteries of Patriot SAM systems in service. In the near future, the AFU will receive a fourth system.

Source: Reuters

Images: NATO