In Kyiv, they hope to use the Patriot air defense system in the spring

Moscow, January 10 – Mikhail Podolak, adviser to the chief of staff of Volodymyr Zelensky, believes that the Patriot air defense systems received from the West will begin to be used by the Ukrainian army in early to mid-spring.

Modernized Patriot systems are included in the next package of US military aid to Ukraine, which Vladimir Zelensky presented to Washington. The Pentagon rules out the possibility of sending American accounts to Ukraine and promises to train Ukrainians within a few months. According to Russian President Vladimir Putin, the supply of Patriot anti-aircraft missile systems to Ukraine is prolonging the conflict.

Later, German Chancellor Olaf Schultz and US President Joe Biden agreed in a telephone conversation to send heavy military equipment to Kyiv. Germany announced its readiness to supply Marder infantry fighting vehicles and Patriot air defense systems.

Russia has previously sent a memorandum to NATO countries over the supply of weapons to Ukraine. Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov has indicated that any shipment containing weapons to Ukraine would become a legitimate target for Russia. The Russian Foreign Ministry stated that NATO countries were “playing with fire” by supplying arms to Ukraine. The press secretary of the President of the Russian Federation Dmitry Peskov noted that the injection of weapons into Ukraine from the West does not contribute to the success of the Russian-Ukrainian negotiations.