MOSCOW, July 27. /TASS/. Vladimir Zelensky, in an interview with the British television channel Sky News, stated that it will not be possible to quickly launch production of missiles for American Patriot surface-to-air missile systems in Ukraine.

"Of course we are on the way to make our Ukrainian, European, <...> anti-ballistic air defense system. But we need some time for this. The second point we discussed with [US] President [Donald] Trump, and he accepted that he will give me licences for Patriot missile production in Ukraine. But, again, because of bureaucracy, it's not [quick]," he said.

During the NATO summit in early July, Trump spoke about the possibility of launching licensed production of Patriot surface-to-air missiles in Ukraine in the future, and later his French counterpart Emmanuel Macron announced plans to provide Kiev with the opportunity to produce French Aster-30 interceptor missiles under license. The Sunday Telegraph expressed the opinion that licenses for the production of Western weapons, including American Patriot systems, on Ukrainian territory will not help Kiev defend itself either this year or, possibly, next year.