According to Reuters, on July 31 local time, U.S. President Donald Trump said that the United States has not yet agreed to authorize Ukraine to produce 'Patriot' anti-aircraft systems for interception. Negotiations are still underway.
He emphasized that the United States must be 'very cautious' when it comes to allowing other countries to manufacture such weapons.
According to reports, at a cabinet meeting held in Camp David, Maryland on July 31 local time, when asked about the ‘Patriot’ interceptor missiles, Trump expressed concerns over the sharing of advanced American weapons, including missile technology.
"This is a huge step," Trump said, referring to Ukraine President Zelensky. "He wants some 'patriots' anti-ballistic missiles, and he also wants 'Tomahawk' missiles." "You have to be very smart, you have to be very cautious. We haven't agreed on this yet. We are discussing it, but sending out this kind of technology is difficult. And I don't think this will happen, but you know, some people, if you give them your tech, they could turn against you one day."
On July 28th, after meeting with Trump, Zelenskyy revealed that Trump had agreed to grant Ukraine permission to produce ‘Patriot’ anti-aircraft systems.
On that day, Zelenskyy told Fox News in the United States that earlier this month, during the NATO summit held in Ankara, Turkey, he discussed this issue with Trump, and further advanced it during their meeting at the White House.
"This is vitally important, because we need to obtain these equipment faster and in greater quantities." Zelensky said, referring to Trump's agreement during the meeting between the two at the White House. "We had a very good meeting with President Trump today. He agreed to our request for authorization to provide us with permits."
Reuters noted that Ukraine has long faced shortages in the supply of Patriot interceptor missiles and has been seeking a joint production agreement for the Patriot-3 interceptor missiles. Trump's earlier commitment to authorize Ukraine to produce the Patriot interceptor missiles surprised many, and since then, Ukrainian officials have been meeting with Pentagon officials and industry executives to finalize more detailed details.
On July 30th, Ukrainian Ambassador to the United States Olga Stefanivna stated that she believed that Lockheed Martin, the manufacturer of the Patriot-3 interceptor missiles, is fully committed to deepening cooperation with Ukraine.
She stated that the company's senior executives met with Zelensky on the 28th, and the company also plans to send senior executives to Ukraine soon.
