NATO commits to improving Ukraine's anti-aircraft defenses

Two words summarize the priorities raised by Ukraine's Defense Minister, Oleksii Reznikov, at the meetings held yesterday in Brussels: "Anti-aircraft defenses," he stressed upon his arrival at NATO headquarters.

Thomas Osborne
Thomas Osborne
13 October 2022 Thursday 02:30
8 Reads
NATO commits to improving Ukraine's anti-aircraft defenses

Two words summarize the priorities raised by Ukraine's Defense Minister, Oleksii Reznikov, at the meetings held yesterday in Brussels: "Anti-aircraft defenses," he stressed upon his arrival at NATO headquarters.

The indiscriminate attacks against civilian targets in several cities in the country have given even more priority to the demand of the Ukrainian government to Western countries, which yesterday promised to deliver more equipment. "The allies have already sent air defenses but we need more, we need different types: short-range and long-range, for ballistic and cruise missiles..." Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said before the contact group meeting that led by the United States and in which 50 countries from all over the world participate.

Until now, this equipment, which is not abundant in the arsenals of NATO countries, has reached Ukraine only dribbles. The United States has agreed to include two sophisticated Nasams in the new military aid package to Kyiv, and four more are on the way. Germany, after many delays, has just delivered the first state-of-the-art Iris-T anti-aircraft kit, and announced yesterday that another three will arrive next year. Several NATO countries are expected to make further announcements to this effect today.

Given the scarcity of resources and the long time required to produce anti-aircraft defense systems due to their technical complexity, the United States Department of Defense is considering recovering older systems, such as the latest versions of the famous Hawk.

In recent months, many allied countries have handed over their own weapons to Ukraine so that it can defend itself against Russian aggression. “It is time to replenish weapons and ammunition stocks,” Stoltenberg urged the NATO defense ministers, both for self-defense and to continue supporting Kyiv.