President Volodymyr Zelensky of Ukraine, who was scheduled to meet on Wednesday with President Trump at a NATO summit, has been clear on what he wants from Western allies meeting this week in Turkey: Patriot missiles and the related defense systems to counter Russian ballistic missiles.
“This is our top priority,” he said in a speech on Monday after a wave of Russian strikes over the weekend killed more than 50 people in and around Kyiv, the capital.
The Russian attack on Sunday night succeeded because Ukraine did not have the capacity to intercept Russian ballistic missiles, though it was able to shoot down almost all drones and cruise missiles, the president said.
“The reason is precisely the insufficient supply of interceptor missiles,” he said.
He was referring to the interceptors that are one part of a costly American-made Patriot mobile surface-to-air defense system that also includes advanced radar, a control van and missile launchers that fire the interceptors — like ammunition from a gun — to stop the target in midair.
Mr. Zelensky is urging European states to sell him Patriot missiles. He has also asked Mr. Trump to let Ukraine make the Patriot systems.
“If Ukraine were granted licenses by the United States to produce Patriot systems, our production capacity would be sufficient not only to defend Ukraine but also to help partners that need them,” he said.
Mr. Zelensky has pressed for a Patriot production deal in response to Russia’s use of ballistic missiles.
“Russia is placing its bet on ballistic missiles, and those who want peace must place their bet on protection against ballistic attacks,” he said.
Ukraine needs more Patriot systems to protect its major cities, from Odesa in the south to Kyiv and to Kharkiv in the east, said Solomiia Bobrovska, a member of Ukraine’s parliamentary committee on national security, defense and intelligence.
The rising number of dead from recent missile strikes gives Mr. Zelensky a strong case at the summit, Ms. Bobrovska said.
The summit comes at a time when both Russia and Ukraine have sought to focus Mr. Trump’s attention on ending the war in Ukraine after he has spent months dealing with Iran.
Ms. Bobrovska and Yehor Cherniev, head of the permanent delegation of Ukraine to the NATO Parliamentary Assembly, said they did not believe Russia was ready to make peace, even if Mr. Trump wanted to.
Mr. Cherniev insisted that the way to end Russian aggression was through stronger support for Ukraine.
“Any delay in financial assistance and in the delivery of missiles for Ukraine’s Patriot air defense systems significantly increases the risk of a direct war between Russia and NATO,” he said. “If Russia is not significantly weakened on the battlefield in the near future, it could launch an attack on Poland or the Baltic States.”
Soon after he arrived in Turkey’s capital, Ankara, on Tuesday, Mr. Zelensky urged NATO leaders to move fast in a speech at the Defense Industry Forum.
“Europe needs affordable, mass produced antiballistic systems as soon as possible,” he said. “In fact, today.”
