Ukraine Breached by Russia's New Ballistic Missile... Zelensky Requests Patriot Support from U.S.

After being struck by Russia's new hypersonic ballistic missile, Ukraine has requested additional air defense support from the United States.

AFP Yonhap News

According to the Kyiv Independent and other sources on May 27 (local time), Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky sent a letter to U.S. President Donald Trump the day before, requesting additional support for Patriot air defense system missiles. The request underscored the urgent need for U.S.-made air defense systems to counter Russia's ballistic missile attacks.

President Zelensky stated, "Ballistic missile defense is almost entirely dependent on the United States," and appealed for assistance in securing additional Patriot PAC-3 missiles and other air defense systems. He stressed that these are essential defensive means to prevent Russian airstrikes.

President Zelensky also pointed out that support through the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO)'s Ukraine Priority Assistance List (PURL), a program for supplying weapons to Ukraine, is currently unable to keep pace with the level of threat. Under the PURL system, NATO member states jointly procure U.S.-made defense equipment and provide it to Ukraine.

Previously, last week, Russian forces attacked Bila Tserkva near Kyiv, Ukraine, with the new ballistic missile "Oreshnik." The name "Oreshnik" means "hazel" and the missile is reportedly capable of carrying both nuclear and conventional warheads. Its range is said to reach up to 5,000 kilometers.

Russia previously used the Oreshnik missile in the Dnipro region in November 2024, and again in the Lviv region in January this year.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.