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On Wednesday, January 11, it was announced that about 100 Ukrainian troops will head to Oklahoma’s Fort Sill as soon as next week to begin training on the Patriot missile defense system, the Pentagon announced Tuesday. Ukraine has long sought the Patriot surface-to-air guided missile defense system because it can target aircraft, cruise missiles and shorter-range ballistic missiles. During his late December visit to the U.S., Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said the battery would make a significant difference in bolstering Kyiv’s defenses against Russia’s invasion.
Also on Wednesday, the Canadian government announced that it will buy a National Advanced Surface-to-Air Missile System (NASAMS) from the United States and donated it to Ukraine in a bid to help strengthen the country’s air defense systems against ongoing Russian attacks. In addition to NASAMS, the government will also supply Ukraine with all associated munitions. The value of the donation, which was officially announced on January 10, 2023, stands at around $406 million. It will be funded by the country’s $500 million military aid package for Ukraine, which was first announced by Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau in November 2022.
On Thursday, January 12, Lockheed Martin presented a new way of employing the company’s highly capable Patriot PAC-3 Missile Segment Enhancement surface-to-air missile, firing it from a Mk 41 Vertical Launch System cell. This combination opens a door to potentially adding this missile to the arsenal of dozens of current and future warships in service around the world, including with the U.S. Navy. In addition, it could allow any ground-based variant or derivative of the Mk 41, such as ones the U.S. Army and U.S. Navy are developing, to fire these interceptors, in addition to various other missiles.
On Friday, January 13, top national security officials from the United States and Japan are to agree to changes in the joint defense posture this week as the two nations confront rising threats from North Korea and increasing aggressiveness from China. U.S. officials say Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin will meet on Wednesday with their Japanese counterparts and plan to issue a joint statement that will adjust, but not increase, the American troop presence on the island of Okinawa. It also will add a formal mention of space in the longstanding mutual defense treaty the two countries have held, in a nod to the Pentagon’s creation of the Space Force and Space Command.
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