Germany starts hunt for more air defenses as Zelensky pleads for Patriots
Germany launched a fresh bid on Wednesday to chase down more air defense systems for Ukraine, which in past weeks has suffered some of the heaviest Russian attacks since the full-scale invasion in 2022.
Berlin aims to potentially surpass the sum of 1 billion euros which it collected with a similar initiative last year, Defense Minister Boris Pistorius told reporters in Brussels.
He was speaking before a meeting of the Ramstein group of some 50 nations set up by the U.S. to coordinate military aid. It has been co-chaired by Germany and Britain since Washington decided to no longer lead the group.
Washington was represented by its NATO Ambassador Matthew Whitaker, with U.S. Secretary of Defence Pete Hegseth expected to join a day later for a meeting with his NATO counterparts.
Addressing the gathering at NATO's Brussels headquarters online, Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky repeated his calls for more air defenses to protect Ukrainians, in particular for Patriot or similar systems.
Reuters
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