US should send Ukraine more air defense missiles, congressmen say

Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky welcomes US Representative Jim Himes (D-CT) and US Senator Richard Blumenthal (D-CT) before their meeting while Julie Davis, US Charge d’Affaires ad interim to Ukraine, looks on, in Kyiv, May 27, 2026. (Reuters)

• Blumenthal said the US had complied several times in the past with Kyiv’s requests for additional weapons
• Both congressmen, Blumenthal said, would ‌lobby on their return to Washington for additional air defense interceptors ‌for Ukraine

KYIV: The US government should respond ‌positively to President Volodymyr Zelensky’s request for more air defense missiles to shield Ukraine’s capital from a threatened escalation in Russian bombardment, two US congressmen said on Thursday.
Zelensky wrote to US President Donald Trump and the members of the US Congress this week to request additional Patriot systems and interceptors — the only effective shield against Russia’s ballistic missiles in Ukraine’s arsenal.
On Monday, Russia warned foreigners and diplomats to leave Kyiv and said it would launch “systematic strikes” on targets in the Ukrainian capital. In its ‌latest massive ‌strike on Sunday, Russia used 30 ballistic missiles ‌against ⁠Ukraine and only ⁠11 of them were shot down, according to Ukraine’s air force.
After meeting with Zelensky in Kyiv, Senator Richard Blumenthal of Connecticut said the United States had complied several times in the past with Kyiv’s requests for additional weapons.
“My hope and expectation is that America will respond positively to this request,” said Blumenthal, ⁠speaking alongside US Representative Jim Himes, a fellow ‌Democrat.
Both congressmen, Blumenthal said, would ‌lobby on their return to Washington for additional air defense interceptors ‌for Ukraine and tougher sanctions on Russia: “What we will regard ‌as our mission, as we go back, is to make sure that Ukraine has the means to do the job.”
Since Trump took office, Ukraine has been purchasing Patriot missiles through NATO’s Prioritised Ukraine Requirements ‌List (PURL) initiative, financed by its European allies.
In his letter, Zelensky thanked the United States ⁠for its support ⁠but said the pace of interceptor missile deliveries under PURL was no longer keeping pace with the scale of the threat in Ukraine.
Himes, the top Democrat on the House of Representatives’ Intelligence Committee, said that conversations in Washington around military support to Ukraine had been complicated by the US war on Iran, which was draining valuable resources.
“That conflict needs to be brought to a close yesterday for many reasons, including the fact that the material that is being used in the Arabian Gulf right now needs to be used for our defense and needs to be provided to Ukraine,” Himes said.