According to U.S. sources, the country is about to authorize delivering a Patriot missile battery to Ukraine, finally granting an urgent request from Ukrainian leaders who need more powerful weapons to repel imminent Russian attacks.
According to three officials who spoke on anonymity because the decision is still being considered and has not been made public, the permission is most likely to occur later this week and might even be made public as early as Thursday.
Two of the officials claimed that the Patriot would be transported from overseas and stored at the Pentagon.
Even as late as Monday, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky asked Western politicians to give his nation’s struggle against Russia better weapons.
By delivering Patriot surface-to-air missiles, the West might step up the defense equipment it is sending to Ukraine to assist it in fending off Russian aircraft attacks.
This would be a significant step forward.
Zelenskyy said that his country needed long-range missiles, contemporary tanks, artillery, and missile batteries, as well as other cutting-edge air defense systems to combat Russian attacks that have cut off electricity and water supplies for millions of Ukrainians, during a video conference on Monday with the host Germany and other leaders of the Group of Seven industrial powers.
The protection of Ukraine’s energy facilities from Russian missiles and Iranian drones, he said, “will be the protection of the whole of Europe, since with these strikes Russia is provoking a humanitarian and migration catastrophe not only for Ukraine but for the entire EU.”
He acknowledged, “Unfortunately, Russia still has an advantage in artillery and missiles.”
According to White House and Pentagon officials, Patriot missiles have been under discussion for some time, and equipping Ukraine with more air defenses is a top priority. One of the officials claimed that as winter came to a close, that factor became more important.
After four consecutive three-quarter-point rises, the Fed is anticipated to boost its short-term benchmark rate by a half-point on Wednesday.
The benchmark rate would then be at its highest point in 15 years, between 3.75% and 4%.
If inflation stays relatively low, they anticipate the Fed will further reduce its rate hikes next year, with quarter-point increases in February and March.
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