American defense companies Raytheon and Lockheed Martin have reservations about transferring Ukraine the licenses necessary for the production of interceptor missiles for Patriot systems.
This was reported on August 9, 2026 by The Atlantic, citing a Republican official in the U.S. Congress who supports granting Ukraine such licenses.
At the same time, the claim that companies have already definitively “refused Ukraine” is too categorical. The Atlantic writes about an obstacle in the negotiations and producers’ concerns, while no final decision to refuse was reported. On the contrary, President Volodymyr Zelensky said that a political agreement with U.S. President Donald Trump on the licenses already exists, although Washington has not yet publicly confirmed it.
According to The Atlantic, Raytheon and Lockheed Martin officially explain their concerns by the risk of intellectual property theft and possible technology leakage.
However, a congressional interlocutor of the publication named another possible reason. According to him, manufacturers may fear that Ukrainian specialists will improve the Patriot and be able to set up large-scale production faster and cheaper than current production lines in the United States. This is the assessment of an anonymous American official, not an officially confirmed position of the companies themselves.
For Ukraine, the question of domestic production of Patriot missiles is particularly important due to a shortage of interceptors to combat Russian ballistic missiles. On July 29, 2026, during a meeting with U.S. senators, Volodymyr Zelensky said that Ukraine is ready to produce such missiles and called to move to the practical implementation of this project as soon as possible.
The president then emphasized Ukraine’s readiness for such production.
“We have long discussed the possibility of producing Patriot interceptor missiles in Ukraine, and Ukraine is ready and capable of producing them”.
Already on July 23, the Office of the President reported a meeting of Volodymyr Zelensky with representatives of Raytheon. At that time, by contrast, it was about the company’s readiness to develop a partnership and jointly produce missiles for the Patriot.
And on July 28 the president met in Washington with the Lockheed Martin team. The parties discussed joint production, technology exchange, and possible solutions regarding the Patriot. The Office of the President then said that the teams were already working on concrete steps to move to joint production.
Therefore, the current information from The Atlantic indicates not a final breakdown of the agreements, but complex negotiations over the conditions for transferring American technologies and licenses.
According to the publication, even after obtaining permission to deploy mass production of Patriot missiles in Ukraine, it will not be quick — creating such production may take years. That is why Kyiv is simultaneously seeking both the right to produce missiles independently and the immediate supply of ready interceptors.
Earlier we wrote:
- Ukraine is getting three times fewer missiles for Patriot: Zelensky suggested political pressure from partners
- 24 ballistic missiles in one night: the anti-ballistic shortage again cost Ukraine lives
- A ballistic interceptor for €1 mln instead of the very expensive Patriot missiles: how ready is FREYJA?
- There are no missiles for Patriot: while partners hesitate, Russia strikes ports and residential buildings
- Supplies are exhausted: Zelensky asks Trump for 300 Patriot interceptors by winter
