Poland says it has no Patriot missiles left to give Ukraine
Foreign minister Radosław Sikorski said Poland has none left to spare, as a global shortage of Patriot interceptors deepens after strikes on Iran.
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Poland's foreign minister, Radosław Sikorski, said Poland no longer has spare missiles to hand over to Ukraine, as a global shortage of the interceptors deepens. He made the comment in an interview with the Polish Press Agency, PAP, published on 19 October and later cited by Ukrainian and Polish media.
Sikorski said the shortage of interceptor missiles had grown more severe since strikes on Iran, and that Russia was producing more missiles than NATO and its partners had the means to shoot down. "It's a real problem," he said. He added that some NATO members still held stocks of Patriot interceptors that could go to Ukraine, but Poland was not among them.
Poland would continue to support Kyiv "in every way it can," Sikorski said, and would join calls for allies that still have Patriot missiles to share them with Ukraine. He did not name which countries he meant.
The shortage comes as Russia keeps striking Ukraine's energy and civilian infrastructure. According to 24 Kanal, Russia attacked Ukraine with ballistic and and drones overnight on 19 October, hitting energy and civilian sites and causing deaths and injuries.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has said the United States is delaying delivery of Patriot missiles that allies have already paid for under a scheme known as PURL. Zelensky said the US currently supplies Ukraine with only 12 interceptor missiles a month, forcing Kyiv to gather batches of two to ten missiles at a time from other countries, including in Europe.
The Washington Post reported that the administration of President Donald Trump has not yet approved transferring some interceptor missiles from other countries to Ukraine. US Secretary of State Marco Rubio denied Washington was deliberately delaying deliveries, saying the holdup reflects high global demand for interceptors and that US policy on supporting Ukraine remains unchanged.
Sikorski also said the European Union's €90bn loan programme for Ukraine has not yet been fully used. He said he expects the EU will eventually have to revisit using frozen assets held by Russia's central bank to help fund Ukraine, but said a compromise was unlikely before winter because Belgium, which holds most of the assets, is blocking the plan over fears of legal claims from Russia. He said the European Commission is looking for ways to shield Belgium from that risk.
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What we know
- Official · Poland's foreign ministry Poland's foreign minister, Radosław Sikorski, says the country has no spare Patriot missiles to give Ukraine
- Official · Radosław Sikorski He says the shortage of interceptors has worsened since strikes on Iran
- Official · Volodymyr Zelensky Zelensky says the US currently supplies only 12 Patriot interceptors a month
- 1 outlet · The Washington Post The Washington Post says the Trump administration has not approved transferring some interceptors from other countries
- Official · Radosław Sikorski The EU's €90bn loan to Ukraine has not yet been fully disbursed, Sikorski says
- Official · Radosław Sikorski Belgium is blocking use of frozen Russian central bank assets over legal-risk concerns
How each fact is established: Verified checked by an ECTV editorOfficial stated by an official body2+ outlets reported independently by two or more news organisations1 outlet reported by a single news organisation so farUnconfirmed claimed or reportedHow we label facts
Why it matters for Europe
Patriot systems are Ukraine's main defence against Russian , and a shortage of interceptors limits how well Kyiv can protect its cities and power grid from strikes like the one reported by 24 Kanal on 19 October. Poland, as a NATO member bordering Ukraine and a key transit route for Western weapons, running out of stock points to a wider capacity problem among Kyiv's European backers.\n\nThe dispute over Belgium blocking the use of frozen Russian central bank assets also shapes how the EU can keep funding Ukraine's war effort through the winter, when energy infrastructure is most exposed to Russian strikes.
Sources
Reported by 3 reports from 3 independent outlets in 2 countries.
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Questions and answers
- Why doesn't Poland have Patriot missiles to give Ukraine?
- Foreign minister Radosław Sikorski said Poland's own stocks are needed, and a global shortage of interceptors has worsened since strikes on Iran.
- How many Patriot interceptors does the US supply Ukraine each month?
- Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said the US currently supplies only 12 a month.
- What is holding up EU use of frozen Russian assets for Ukraine?
- Belgium, which holds most of the assets, is blocking the plan over fears of legal claims from Russia, Sikorski said.
This article was written with AI assistance from 3 verified reports and checked under the ECTV editorial policy. Spotted an error? Request a correction.