WASHINGTON, Oct. 30 (Xinhua) -- The U.S. Department of State announced Friday that it had approved the sale of 500 Patriot PAC-3 missiles and related equipment to Ukraine, valued at 2.1 billion U.S. dollars.
"The Government of Ukraine has requested to buy five hundred PATRIOT Advanced Capability-3 (PAC-3) Missile Segment Enhancement (MSE) missiles. The following non-major defense equipment items will also be included: PAC-3 MSE classified and unclassified spare parts; and other related elements of logistics and program support," it said.
Ukraine will pay for this purchase with donations from Canada, Germany and Norway via the JUMPSTART program and national funds, financed by the European Union's Ukraine Support Loan. No U.S. funds are involved in this sale, according to the statement.
The principal contractor will be American defense and aerospace manufacturer Lockheed Martin.
Ukraine has run out of missiles for the Patriot air defense system, a source familiar with the situation told CNN earlier this month.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky told media this week that Ukraine receives an average of 12 missiles a month for its Patriot air defense systems this year, according to Ukrinform, Ukraine's state news agency. ■
