Ukraine Admits "Patriot Missiles Depleted"... At Least 9 Killed in Kyiv by Russian Airstrikes

Repeated Calls to the West for Additional Support

Ukraine has officially acknowledged that it has run out of the Patriot interceptor missiles, which are virtually its only effective means of defending against Russian ballistic missile attacks. This situation appears to be the result of a sharp decline in the supply of Patriot interceptor missiles to Ukraine, as the United States shifts its resources to respond to the war with Iran.

Volodymyr Zelensky, President of Ukraine. The Asia Business Daily DB

On August 1 (local time), Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky disclosed this situation through the social media platform X (formerly Twitter).

President Zelensky stated, "We had no interceptor missiles available for the Patriot system, so we could only shoot down a single ballistic missile," adding, "Russia is intensifying attacks aimed at causing civilian casualties, taking advantage of the fact that we lack sufficient means to defend against ballistic missiles."

According to President Zelensky, in the early hours of August 1, Russian forces concentrated their assault on the Ukrainian capital, Kyiv, mobilizing 35 missiles—including 27 ballistic missiles—and 185 drones. Simultaneous strikes also targeted Dnipro, Sumy, Kharkiv, and Poltava.

As Ukraine was unable to intercept Russia's missiles due to depleted Patriot stocks, fires broke out throughout Kyiv, with at least nine people killed. Damage was inflicted on 18 residential buildings, a school, the Lithuanian Embassy, and various infrastructure facilities.

The shortage of Patriot interceptor missiles has grown even more severe as U.S. inventories have been heavily drained in the process of responding to the ongoing war with Iran, in addition to previously insufficient supply levels.

On July 29, President Zelensky met with U.S. President Donald Trump at the White House to directly request additional support for Patriot interceptor missiles. At that time, President Zelensky reportedly offered to share Ukraine's accumulated drone defense technology and experience in countering Russian and Iranian drones with the United States.

On X that same day, President Zelensky again called on the West for additional support. He emphasized, "It is crucial for our partner countries to recognize that such air defense capabilities should not be stockpiled somewhere in preparation for hypothetical scenarios, but are needed right now, here, to deter and stop Russia's ongoing war against Ukraine."

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