U.S. President Donald Trump stated that the United States will grant Ukraine the right to manufacture Patriot systems and will also purchase Ukrainian drones. He made this announcement during a meeting with Volodymyr Zelenskyy in Ankara on the sidelines of the NATO summit.
This was reported by Dengi.ua, citing the publication European Pravda (available here).
What Trump Said About Ukraine’s Right to Produce Patriot Systems
According to Donald Trump, the U.S. will grant Ukraine licenses to manufacture Patriot air defense systems. However, the American leader did not specify whether this refers to the complete missile systems or only to their interceptor missiles.
“A little birdie told me that we’re going to give them the right to make Patriots. We’ll show them what to do—it’s actually very difficult,” Trump said, pointing to Zelenskyy.
He also expressed confidence in the capabilities of Ukrainian industry:
“But you know how to do complicated things quickly. That’s why we’ve been talking about giving you licenses to manufacture the Patriot,” the U.S. president reiterated.
What Is Known About the Purchase of Ukrainian Drones
Separately, Trump stated that the United States will purchase drones from Ukraine. This was his response to journalists’ questions about the status of the drone agreement between the two countries.
According to him, the U.S. manufactures high-quality drones itself, but Ukraine has the capacity to produce them in massive quantities.
“It’s amazing that they’re producing them in the midst of a war. They’re making them in basements,” the U.S. president noted.