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The U. S has decided to rush its deliveries of missiles for Patriot air defence systems to Ukraine, delaying the delivery to Switzerland regardless of the agreement with the Swiss government.
Swedish media outlet Blick reported this on June 18.
“The Americans want to supply more Patriot missiles to Ukraine first. The country has been under heavy Russian fire for months and is urgently asking other countries to supply it with more air defense systems. Switzerland will therefore have to wait longer despite valid contracts. How long still seems unclear. What is clear is that the global demand currently far exceeds the production capacity of Patriot guided missiles,” claims the media.
Bern’s order for the PAC-3 Patriot missiles is worth $340 million.
According to Blick’s sources, American officials were supposed to issue an official statement on the decision on Tuesday, however, no announcement has been made yet.
The U. S. and Switzerland sealed their deal on the Patriot missiles in October 2023. Still, it envisages possible conditions for delays, which at this point is Ukraine’s dire need to provide security to itself and Europe.
“According to the agreements with Washington, the agreed conditions can be deviated from if there are unusual or compelling reasons for doing so and if the national security concerns of the USA are affected,” Blick noted.
Previously, German Defence Minister asked Switzerland to supply a Patriot system to Ukraine despite its policy of neutrality and received no positive response.
Also, NATO Secretary General Stoltenberg stated that providing Patriot systems to Ukraine remained a top priority for the alliance.
Read also: Ukraine and the U.S. Signed a Bilateral Security Agreement
