Poland's defence minister has asked Germany to ship a Patriot surface-to-air missile defence system intended for Poland to Ukraine instead, to help its defence against Russia's invasion.

The offer follows a deadly missile blast in a Polish village last week that Warsaw believes may have been a stray Ukrainian air defence missile launched against a barrage of Russian strikes.

"I have asked Germany to send the Patriot system offered to Poland to Ukraine where it could be installed on their western border," Mariusz Blaszczak said on Twitter late on Wednesday.

"This would allow Ukraine to protect itself against incurring more casualties and blackouts and reinforce the security of our eastern border," he said.

The German government earlier this week said it had reached an agreement to help Poland protect its skies, following the explosion near the Ukrainian border which killed two people.

Poland and NATO agree that the blast was probably caused by a stray Ukrainian air defence missile, but have said Moscow is ultimately responsible.

Germany has already sent Patriot air defence units to Slovakia, where Berlin hopes to keep them deployed until at least the end of 2023.

Asked about Blaszczak's comments, German Defence Minister Christine Lambrecht said the request would have to be run past NATO.

"Given Poland's exposed situation... it was important to us as a NATO partner to offer Poland support in this special situation -- with air policing but also with the Patriots," she said, referring to the stray missile.

Lambrecht noted that the Patriot systems were part of the integrated air defence coordinated by NATO.

"Thus other suggestions must be discussed with NATO, with our allies," she told reporters.

Related Links
Learn about missile defense at SpaceWar.com
Learn about nuclear weapons doctrine and defense at SpaceWar.com
All about missiles at SpaceWar.com
Learn about the Superpowers of the 21st Century at SpaceWar.com

Tweet

Thanks for being here; We need your help. The SpaceDaily news network continues to grow but revenues have never been harder to maintain. With the rise of Ad Blockers, and Facebook - our traditional revenue sources via quality network advertising continues to decline. And unlike so many other news sites, we don't have a paywall - with those annoying usernames and passwords. Our news coverage takes time and effort to publish 365 days a year. If you find our news sites informative and useful then please consider becoming a regular supporter or for now make a one off contribution.
SpaceDaily Contributor $5 Billed Once credit card or paypal		SpaceDaily Monthly Supporter $5 Billed Monthly paypal only

Northrop Grumman's IBCS uses new Weapons Data Link to Engage Patriot Missile during dlight test
Huntsville AL (SPX) Nov 24, 2022
During two separate tests at White Sands Missile Range (WSMR), New Mexico, Northrop Grumman Corporation's (NYSE: NOC) Integrated Battle Command System (IBCS) proved again the system's modular, open architecture integrates with any networked sensor and effector from past, present or future. The first live target engagement involved a Sentinel radar tracking a cruise missile target across the desert. IBCS then engaged the target using Lockheed Martin's Remote Interc ... read more