The lower house of the Romanian parliament has supported a law that allows the transfer of the Patriot missile defense system to Ukraine. The day before, the bill was supported by the country’s government, Babel reports.
According to Reuters, Romanian President Klaus Iohannis is to sign the bill, after which the government will issue an order to transfer the Patriot to Ukraine.
In June, Bucharest announced that it would transfer one of its two Patriot systems to Ukraine, provided that the allies replace it with a similar air defense system. The “Romanian” Patriot is part of the air defense equipment that NATO countries have promised to provide to Ukraine.
The Romanian Ministry of Defense says it will supply one of seven 3+ systems purchased from the United States. This is the most advanced version of the Patriot defense system and is used by the United States and nearly 20 other NATO allies.
In 2017, Romania signed a $4 billion agreement with the United States to purchase seven Patriot systems. The first batch was delivered in 2020. Romania currently has four Patriot systems, two of which are already in operation.
In the early summer, Kyiv actively called on its allies to provide Ukraine with additional Patriot systems and other air defense equipment to protect itself from Russian attacks.
