Germany to Allocate $400 Million for Anti-Aircraft Missiles for Ukraine

Germany will provide $400 million to purchase anti-aircraft missiles for Ukraine’s Patriot air defense systems.

Speaking ahead of a meeting of NATO defense ministers in Brussels, German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius said that $200 million will be allocated through the PURL initiative. In comparison, the remaining $200 million will be provided through JUMPSTART, a special funding mechanism under the U.S. Foreign Military Sales (FMS) program.

The funds will be used primarily to purchase U.S.-made PAC-3 interceptor missiles, which are used by Patriot air defense systems to shoot down Russian ballistic missiles.

“This will enable the procurement of guided missiles for Patriot systems… We are therefore moving forward,” the German defense minister emphasized.

Pistorius noted that Germany is participating in the PURL funding mechanism for the fourth time, helping finance the purchase of U.S.-made weapons and ammunition for Ukraine.

He also called on other members of the Ukraine Defense Contact Group to contribute funds to procure PAC-3 interceptor missiles, which are needed to reinforce Ukraine’s air defense network against Russian missile attacks.

The leaders of the G7 countries recently agreed to increase deliveries of air defense equipment to Ukraine in response to ongoing Russian attacks on Ukrainian cities.

According to Bloomberg, Ukraine had previously asked Germany to provide dozens of additional interceptor missiles for its Patriot air defense systems from German stockpiles.

The proposed arrangement would allow Ukraine to receive the missiles immediately, while Germany would later be compensated with interceptor drones supplied by Ukraine.

The German government has reportedly funded the purchase of Norwegian-made NOMADS air defense systems for Ukraine’s Armed Forces, according to the German Aid to Ukraine (GAU) monitoring project.

The number of systems ordered, contract value, and delivery schedule have not been made public. Germany’s plans to acquire NOMADS systems for Ukraine were first reported in July 2024. A month earlier, the Norwegian defense company Kongsberg Defence & Aerospace announced that the system had entered full-scale serial production.