Trump grants Ukraine license to produce Patriot missiles at NATO summit, but production may take years

License announcement at NATO summit

President Donald Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky met on 8 July 2026 during the NATO summit in Ankara. Trump declared that the United States would give Ukraine a license to manufacture Patriot air defense systems.

One of the things we'll talk about is that we'll give you a license to produce Patriot systems, that's pretty cool.

He added that Ukraine would no longer be able to complain about insufficient deliveries, telling them to "make them yourselves."

Zelensky confirmed the positive decision the following day, stating that he and Trump discussed the details extensively.

President Trump repeatedly stressed that only two or three countries in the world are capable of producing the Patriot system, because the others are not technologically ready. Ukraine has been recognized by the United States as a country ready for this task.

Expert skepticism on timeline

Despite the political breakthrough, analysts and defense experts tempered expectations. Bloomberg reported that starting production could take years because of technological challenges and strained supply chains. The PAC-3 interceptor, capable of destroying ballistic missiles and costing about $5 million per unit, is currently produced only in the United States and Japan. Becca Wasser, head of defense at Bloomberg Economics, said that building a Patriot missile takes years, meaning Ukrainian production would not begin on the hoped-for schedule. Strict US controls over sensitive technologies could further slow the process.

1. June 2026Trump expresses positive stance on Patriot license at G7 summit in Évian-les-Bains.
2. 8 July 2026Trump announces license grant during NATO summit in Ankara.
3. 9 July 2026Zelensky confirms details of license talks and upcoming PAC-3 missile delivery.
4. PAC-3 deliveryUkraine receives PAC-3 interceptor missiles from the United States.
5. Freya meetingFirst meeting on the Ukrainian Freya anti-missile project takes place in France.

Immediate missile deliveries and European cooperation

Zelensky announced that Ukraine will receive a package of PAC-3 missiles from the United States in the coming days. The announcement follows a week in which Russia struck Kyiv three times, using nearly 500 drones and 77 missiles, including 25 ballistic and hypersonic missiles, killing at least 30 people. Ukraine's Defense Ministry had appealed to almost 40 countries for Patriot missiles from existing stocks.

At the same NATO summit, the US signed an agreement with Poland, Germany, the Netherlands, and Sweden on servicing Patriot missiles in Europe. Polish Defense Minister Władysław Kosiniak-Kamysz said the deal could eventually lead to production on the continent. Polish Foreign Minister Radosław Sikorski called Trump's license pledge a positive surprise.

This is good news on several levels, because the United States is reluctant to share its technologies, and if effectors are to be produced in Europe, Poland could also benefit.

Freya: Ukraine's own anti-missile project

Zelensky also revealed that a first meeting on the Freya project will take place in France in the coming days. Freya is a Ukrainian anti-missile system designed to match the Patriot's capability against ballistic targets but to be produced on a larger scale and at lower cost.

This project is our anti-missile system, intended to be an equivalent of the Patriot system in terms of combating ballistic targets, but to be produced on a larger scale and be cheaper.

The initiative is framed as a European model, with leaders and defense companies invited to participate.

Signal to Moscow and diplomatic context

Serhiy Kyslytsia, first deputy head of the Ukrainian President's Office, described the Ankara summit as a strong signal to Moscow. He noted that the Patriot license progressed from a request at the June G7 summit to a clear positive answer in Ankara. Kyslytsia called the Zelensky-Trump meeting one of their best, with a 45-minute conversation in front of journalists. He also linked the warming of US-Ukraine ties to the US-Iran conflict, saying Russia's cooperation with Iran had shifted American attention and created new dynamics on the Ukrainian front. Zelensky had two phone calls with Trump in the previous month and a trilateral meeting with French President Emmanuel Macron.