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President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy said that Ukraine had asked the United States to grant licences for the production of modern Patriot air defence systems, but had not yet received a response. He said this in an interview with the French newspaper Le Parisien published on 18 December.
“I asked a lot – give us licences to produce Patriot. No one has ever said that it is impossible, but we have not received anything so far,” Zelensky said.
The President stressed that modern warfare is “a battle of weapons, a battle of intelligence, a battle of technologies” and called on the West not only to supply Ukraine with weapons, but also to allow its own production.
Zelenskyy also suggested using frozen Russian assets to create defensive weapons in Ukraine.
“We are ready to produce air defence systems and other weapons. Give us licences, and we will use Russia’s frozen assets for this purpose,” the head of state added.
The Ukrainian president stressed that Western countries often explain restrictions on the supply of air defence systems by insufficient production capabilities, as many countries around the world need such systems. At the same time, Ukraine continues to insist on its needs, as the closure of the skies is a key factor in protecting the country from Russian aggression.
