Washington Approves New Transfer of Patriot Missiles for Ukraine

The U.S. State Department has approved the transfer to Ukraine of another 10 MIM-104E GEM-T interceptor missiles for Patriot air defense systems. The missiles, worth approximately $29.6 million, will be provided by Germany, which previously received them from the United States.

This information is contained in a State Department notification published in the Congressional Record of the U.S. Senate.

This is not a direct supply of missiles from U.S. stockpiles. Germany intends to transfer to Ukraine American weapons previously supplied to it by the United States. For such re-export, Berlin needs the consent of the U.S. government.

According to the published notification, Washington has authorized the transfer of ten Patriot MIM-104E Guidance Enhanced Missile-Tactical missiles, known as GEM-T. The current total value of the batch is estimated at $29.6 million.

GEM-T belongs to the PAC-2 interceptor family for the Patriot system. These missiles are designed to defeat aircraft, cruise missiles, and tactical ballistic targets.

The State Department authorization is a necessary legal step in the transfer. Under U.S. arms export rules, states that have received U.S.-origin military equipment or ammunition cannot transfer them to a third country without the prior written consent of the U.S. government.

Thus, the document opens the possibility for Germany to provide Ukraine with an additional batch of interceptors from existing stocks. The date of actual delivery of the missiles is not indicated in the published notification.

Germany has previously transferred Patriot missiles to Ukraine and at the same time orders new interceptors to replenish its own stocks. On September 10, the Budget Committee of the Bundestag approved funding for the urgent purchase of additional GEM-T and components to replace the ammunition transferred to Ukraine.

In addition to supplies from partners' existing stocks, Ukraine expects to receive significantly more Patriot missiles under new contracts. In April, Raytheon signed a contract worth $3.7 billion to produce GEM-T for Ukraine with financial support from Germany. Production is to be supported by the new COMLOG facility in Schrobenhausen, Germany.

Ukraine's need for Patriot interceptors remains high due to Russia's regular use of ballistic missiles. President Volodymyr Zelenskyy stated in August that in 2026 Ukraine received about 2.5 times fewer Patriot missiles than a year earlier.

Sources: Congressional Record, U.S. State Department