Zelensky calls out Hegseth for ‘nearly a month’ Patriot missile delay

Ukraine has been waiting “for nearly a month” for U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth to allow missiles for its air defense systems to be sent to the country, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said Monday.

“We have been waiting for nearly a month for Mr. Hegseth to sign off on missiles for Patriots and NASAMS,” Zelensky said in a post to social media . “I instructed our team to raise this with the American side once again. Conversations with other countries are also ongoing.”

While Hegseth has continued to approve some U.S. assistance to Ukraine, he has not formally completed the required steps to allow some Patriot transfers from allies.

Last week, the Pentagon chief claimed the U.S. hadn’t changed its posture toward Ukraine but said “we want to make sure our guys have the most possible” of interceptors.

But Zelensky stressed that it is “important to speed up the implementation of decisions that have been on the table for some time,” as every batch of weapons sent “is an opportunity to protect people’s lives.”

Patriot missile interceptors, used by Ukraine to defend itself against incoming Russian drones and missiles, are in desperately short supply as Moscow continues an unrelenting barrage on Ukrainian cities and energy infrastructure.

Kyiv can receive Patriots through NATO’s Prioritized Ukraine Requirements List, through which its allies buy weapons from the U.S. to then transfer to Ukraine.

But because of the advanced nature of Patriot interceptors, the Pentagon must first sign off on its transfer, which Hegseth has yet to do.

The Kyiv Independent reported that the batch Hegseth is yet to approve is “significant.”

Ukraine also has struggled as of late with the slowdown of the vital military-grade Starlink satellite service, Starshield, used by Kyiv to counter Russian attack drones with its own interceptor drones.

In addition, Zelensky said his country received no warning ahead of several incoming Russian ballistic missiles attacks last week. U.S. intelligence has provided such warnings in the past.

The U.S. maintains that it has made no changes to intelligence sharing with the Ukrainians.