NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg commented on Twitter on Poland's proposal to move Patriot air defence batteries to Ukraine.
“I welcome the German offer to strengthen the air defences of Poland by offering to deploy Patriot batteries to Poland after the tragic incident last week, where two people lost their lives,” Stoltenberg said at a press conference ahead of a meeting of NATO Foreign Ministers in Bucharest next week.
According to him, NATO has increased its presence in the eastern part, especially after the Russian invasion of Ukraine in February.
“We have stepped up our presence with increasing the number of battle groups, increasing the number of troops on the ground, but also backed by significant air and naval capabilities. And this includes also significant air defence systems with fighter aircrafts, ground based air defence systems like the Patriots. We have also provided significant air defence systems to Ukraine, including with modern systems,” the Secretary-General said.
At next week's meeting, Stoltenberg will urge allies to increase support for Ukraine, and not just by providing air defence.
“But decisions on specific capabilities, that remains national decisions,” Stoltenberg noted.
On 23 November, Polish Defence Minister Mariusz Blaszczak said that he had asked Germany to transfer the Patriot anti-aircraft missile systems offered to Poland to Ukraine.
According to German Defence Minister Christine Lambrecht, Poland's request to send Patriot systems directly to Ukraine should be discussed with NATO.