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Ukraine has run out of interceptor missiles for its U.S.-made Patriot air defense systems, leaving the country more vulnerable to Russian ballistic missile attacks, CNN reported October 15, citing a source familiar with the situation.
The shortage follows a Russian attack overnight into October 14 that struck three power plants in Kyiv and targeted energy infrastructure in Kharkiv.
The source told CNN that “almost all the ballistic missiles from the last strike were not intercepted due to lack of the (interceptor) missiles.” Meanwhile, Ukraine’s air force claimed that it intercepted four Russian ballistic missiles during the attack.
Ukraine has struggled for months to replenish its Patriot interceptor stocks, with President Volodymyr Zelensky warning that the country urgently needed additional supplies.
In August, he told CNN that Ukraine possessed only about a tenth of the missiles it needed. A month later, Zelensky said Ukraine would receive a U.S. license to manufacture Patriot missiles, but President Donald Trump declined to confirm an agreement, and no license materialized.
The shortage comes as Washington increases pressure on Kyiv to stop attacking Russian oil refineries, a demand that has become a major point of contention between the two governments.
Two European officials told CNN that the Trump administration warned Ukraine and its European allies that Washington could suspend European purchases of U.S. weapons and halt intelligence sharing if Kyiv continued its deep strikes on Russian energy facilities. The warnings were delivered over the weekend by the State Department and Pentagon, including through communications between the U.S. military and Ukrainian commanders.
Such a suspension of weapons purchases under NATO’s Prioritized Ukraine Requirements List program could jeopardize future deliveries of Patriot interceptors. Trump has denied that the U.S. stopped sharing intelligence with Ukraine.
Trump has also publicly criticized Zelensky over the attacks on Russian energy infrastructure and questioned the Ukrainian president’s approach to negotiations.
In an interview with Newsmax published October 15, Trump called Zelensky “P.T. Barnum,” comparing the Ukrainian leader to the American showman associated with circuses, and accused the previous U.S. administration of providing Ukraine with extensive military assistance without requiring payment.
“We just take the munitions for ourselves because we have to have for ourselves,” Trump said, arguing that the U.S. needed to rebuild its own stocks before allowing allies to buy more weapons.
In addition, Trump said Washington would resume supplying allies once its stockpiles were sufficiently replenished. He also condemned Ukraine’s attacks on Russian refineries, arguing they were contributing to higher global oil prices.
“I think that’s a disgrace,” he said. “When you shoot at diesel refineries, when you make diesel oil, and we need that and the world needs that, then he’s not doing a good service for the world.”
Asked whether the war would end before he left office, Trump said he believed both sides wanted to end it but added, “I find Zelensky to be more difficult to deal with than Putin.”
Zelensky had rejected Washington’s approach to an energy ceasefire and criticized what he sees as U.S. concessions to Moscow.
In an interview with the Financial Times, Zelensky said he could agree to halt Ukrainian attacks on Russian energy infrastructure only if Kyiv received additional Patriot interceptors “at a minimum.”
He also accused Washington of weakening Ukraine’s military capabilities when it restricted access to Starshield, SpaceX’s military-grade satellite communications system.
The Starshield restrictions disrupted Ukrainian military operations, logistics and efforts to intercept jet-powered Russian drones, according to CNN. Ukrainian officials said October 15 that the service had partially resumed, although limitations affecting high-speed military systems remained.
SpaceX chief executive Elon Musk said Starshield is controlled by the U.S. government, while a senior U.S. official told CNN that Trump had not requested the restrictions.
All in all, the U.S. appears to be increasing the pressure on Ukraine like never before. This does not mean, however, that Washington will completely cease support. Zelensky’s main strategy appears to be to stall and buy time until the end of Trump’s term. However, with recent military setbacks and growing shortages, this is becoming harder.
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