US undersecretary of defense Elbridge Colby told a 50-country virtual meeting that Europe must not reduce defence rebuild efforts or backing for Kyiv, while the UK pledged £100m towards air defences and Germany offered older Patriot interceptors.
Ukraine is requesting 300 Patriot interceptors and other specific supplies but faces shortages that have left it vulnerable to Russian ballistic attacks.
Ukraine’s defence minister reported a €23bn budget gap this year and urged faster loan disbursements and funding for drone programmes.
A 50-country virtual meeting of the Ukraine contact group aimed to secure 300 Patriot interceptors for Kyiv and to coordinate broader defence support. The US undersecretary of defense, Elbridge Colby, opened the meeting by saying European countries "must not slacken" in remilitarisation or in support for Ukraine. He argued that support for Ukraine contributes directly to Europe's security by helping rebuild military strength and industrial capacity.
Financial shortfalls and broader requests
Khmara also stated Ukraine faces a defence budget gap of €23bn this year. He asked partners to bring forward funding so a drone investment programme can continue without interruption. Kyiv hopes the European Union will accelerate part of a planned €90bn two-year loan to help plug the shortfall.
Operational consequences on the ground
A shortage of Patriot interceptors has limited Ukraine's ability to prevent Russian ballistic missile attacks. Those attacks have killed civilians and destroyed important food and logistics warehouses over the summer. The article notes that civilian casualties are at their highest level since May 2022 amid near-constant strikes on Ukrainian cities, while Ukraine has stepped up long-range targeting of Russian oil refineries and warehouses.
The meeting took place against a backdrop of renewed diplomatic activity. US envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner visited Kyiv and the Kremlin, discussing peace proposals though no breakthrough was reported. UK prime minister Andy Burnham spoke with US president Donald Trump about pursuing a ceasefire that would prevent more loss of life. Meanwhile the US has pushed for Europe to increase defence spending and to pay to supply American weapons to Kyiv via a NATO-established scheme.
The demands outlined by Ukraine are specific and costly. Each Patriot interceptor has an estimated cost of about $3m, making the full request expensive for donor states. The UK did not state how many interceptors it could buy, suggesting an expectation that contributions will fall well short of the 300 missiles sought. The German offer of older Pac-2 interceptors shows countries are responding with stock reallocations rather than new production alone.
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