Ukraine’s licence to produce Patriot missiles stuck at the Pentagon, sources say

A licence allowing Ukraine to produce missiles for the Patriot air defence system remains stuck at the US Defense Department, two sources told Alex Raufoglu, a Washington correspondent for Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, on Friday, 13 November.

Where it stalled

According to the sources, the documents needed to issue the licence have still not been drawn up, despite reports that US Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth agreed on the matter in October.

The sources said the paperwork has been held up at the level of Michael Duffey, the Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition and Sustainment. The Pentagon has not commented on the report.

A pledge since the summer

Production of Patriot interceptors in Ukraine has been on the table since the summer, when US President Donald Trump promised it to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky. The White House has sent mixed signals since then, and no final decision on the licence has been announced publicly.

Patriot systems are Ukraine’s main defence against Russian ballistic missiles, so the shortage of interceptors is one of Kyiv’s most pressing issues in talks with its allies.