The Ukrainian Armed Forces have complained about the depletion of missile stocks for air defense systems

Ukraine is gradually running out of missiles for the Patriot air defense systems, which the United States is now actively using in Iran.

This was stated to The Times by Colonel Yurii Ihnat, head of communications for the Command of the Air Forces of the Armed Forces of Ukraine.

“We are running out of Patriot missiles. We got through this difficult winter thanks to Patriot missiles. We are constantly asking for more. If we are left without these critically needed missiles, then we will be left without everything, and the Russians will destroy our key infrastructure,” he said.

Ihnat said that since the start of the war in Iran, Ukrainians have observed “an increase in the number of attacks” by Russia and changes in the flight paths of “decoy drones.” All of this, he believes, is aimed at “wearing down” Ukraine’s air defense system. He added that Ukrainians are having to adapt, but that they “have not overcome all the difficulties 100 percent.”

According to the colonel, the recent Russian attacks were a “deliberate” attempt to deplete Ukraine’s air defense resources, in particular the PAC-3 missiles used in Patriot systems.

“The attacks are carried out during the day, and they are becoming more prolonged and exhausting. They are difficult to intercept because the crews are worn out after working all night and face such difficulties as being blinded by the sun. It also affects our economy,” he said.

One Ukrainian pilot noted that Russia is “trying to change tactics” in order to drain Ukraine’s air defenses with “several waves” and deny the armed forces the ability to “destroy all targets.”

The Times, citing senior Ukrainian officials, writes that Russia is gradually depleting Ukraine’s stocks of missiles for Patriot systems. According to the report, Moscow has changed its tactics and is now carrying out air attacks more often, with some lasting up to a full day. It is also noted that these attacks may involve up to a thousand drones. The purpose of such strikes, the paper says, is “to expend expensive missiles and exhaust mobile interceptor groups” against the backdrop of the war in Iran.

On March 30, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said that Ukraine would look for an alternative to Patriot missiles because of the global shortage. On April 3, Zelensky said that there had so far been no signals that U.S. weapons deliveries to Ukraine would stop, but that the country must be prepared for such a possibility.

On April 1, the Financial Times wrote that U.S. President Donald Trump had threatened to stop supplying weapons to Ukraine in order to pressure European allies into helping reopen the Strait of Hormuz.

In March, Defense Express weapons expert Ivan Kyrychevskyi said that a shortage of Patriot missiles could become “a major problem” for Ukraine. Analyst Mykola Bielieskov of the Ukrainian National Institute for Strategic Studies noted that, at current production rates, U.S. defense company Lockheed Martin would need more than two years to produce as many Patriot missiles as the United States fired in just the first two days of the war in Iran.