00:00500 missiles, $2.1 billion, and a warning from Kyiv that they may arrive years too late.
00:08Washington has just approved one of the biggest defensive weapons deals for Ukraine since this administration took office, and the
00:15clock is now the story.
00:17On Friday, the United States State Department approved the possible sale of 500 Patriot Pac-3 interceptor missiles to Ukraine
00:24for an estimated $2.1 billion.
00:28These are not ordinary missiles. The PAC-3 MSE is the most advanced Patriot interceptor in service, one of the
00:35few weapons in the world built to shoot down incoming ballistic missiles.
00:40And here is the twist that changes everything. The missiles have not been built yet.
00:48Two people briefed on the decision told reporters the interceptors are not expected to be delivered until a couple of
00:54years into the 2030s.
00:56Ukraine will not pay for them alone, and American taxpayers are not footing this bill either.
01:02Canada, Germany, and Norway are contributing through a United States program called Jumpstart, alongside national funds financed by the European
01:10Union's Ukraine support loan.
01:12Lockheed Martin, the American defense giant, is the principal contractor.
01:17In July, the United States Army awarded Lockheed a contract worth up to $58.6 billion to produce Patriot interceptors.
01:27So why does Kiev need these missiles so urgently?
01:31Because Russia has stepped up a tax on Ukraine's energy and civilian infrastructure.
01:36President Voluntamir Zelensky said earlier this week that Ukraine had been waiting almost a month for Washington to sign off
01:42on critical missile supplies.
01:45He called it a strong decision, and said 500 interceptors could make a highly effective defense package this winter.
01:52But then came the warning.
01:55He wrote that deliveries may begin only in a few years, and asked American partners to find a solution for
02:01the time when there is a real danger and a real need.
02:03His proposal is blunt.
02:07Supply the missiles now, from existing American and allied stockpiles, and replenish those stockpiles later when the new missiles roll
02:16off the production line.
02:18The State Department says the sale will strengthen Ukraine's integrated air and missile defense, and help sustain the Patriot systems
02:25Ukraine already operates.
02:28This is not the first time the Jumpstart program has been used.
02:31In August, it bought 3,350 air-launched cruise missiles worth $825 million.
02:39But the scale here is different, and so is the timing.
02:43Winter is coming, and air defense in winter is not about strategy papers.
02:48It is about keeping the lights and the heating on.
02:52There is also friction behind the headlines.
02:55Reports say delayed deliveries added to tensions after President Donald Trump announced a diesel deal with Russia, and criticized Kiev
03:02over its strikes on Russian refineries.
03:05The sale must still go through congressional review, and the announcement gave no delivery timetable at all.
03:11So the question tonight is not whether America approved the missiles, it is whether approval on paper becomes protection in
03:21the sky, in time.
03:23For Ukraine, every interceptor is a shield over a city, a power plant, a hospital.
03:30For Russia, every delay is an opening.
03:34For Europe, the bill is shared, the risk is shared, and the message is clear.
03:39The allies paying for this deal are betting that Ukraine's defense is Europe's defense.
03:44And for Washington, this is one of the most significant steps to supply defensive weapons to Kiev since the second
03:51Trump administration began.
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