Supply of Air Defense Missiles from Allies to Ukraine Declines

JAKARTA - President Volodymyr Zelensky said allies were only supplying a third of the number of air defense missiles to Ukraine in 2026 compared to 2025, amid an escalation of Russia's attacks on the capital Kyiv and a port center in its south.

Ukraine has been short of US-made Patriot interceptor missiles - which are capable of taking down Russian ballistic missiles - since the start of the war.

However, in recent weeks, this severe shortage has come under sharp scrutiny as Russia's onslaught on Kyiv has occurred on average every three days throughout July alone.

"And this is not just a summer phenomenon, this condition applies to every period in the first half of 2026," he explained on the Telegram application, launching Al Arabiya from Reuters (5/8).

In a pattern that has been repeated recently, Ukrainian air defenses failed to intercept any of 24 ballistic missiles and four Zircon cruise missiles during Wednesday's attack, according to the air force.

Serhii Beskrestnov, the Presidential Advisor for the development of defense technology, estimates that Russia is capable of launching 100 ballistic missiles every month to attack logistics centers, industrial facilities, as well as food and building materials warehouses.

"This war of attrition has entered the next phase," he said on the Telegram application.

Amid global shortages of interceptor missiles and political uncertainties affecting supplies, a number of military analysts have argued that one way for Ukraine to fight back is to target Russian missile launchers.

However, Ukraine's current capabilities do not make such an attack possible. Kyiv also continues to urge allies to develop a European-scale ballistic anti-missile system and is seeking permission from the US to produce its own Patriot missiles.