On Friday, the President of the United States of America pledged to send a U.S. Patriot missile defense system to Slovakia.
The advanced air defense system is meant to replace the Soviet era S-300 air defense system Slovakia had donated to Ukraine.
On Friday, Slovakia’s Prime Minister Eduard Heger announced that his country is sending Soviet-era S-300 air defense system to Ukraine to “help save many innocent lives from the aggression of the Putin regime.”
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He made the remark while visiting Ukraine with European Union Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell.
“I can confirm that the Slovak Republic has donated to Ukraine an air defense system, the S-300. I believe that this defense system will help save many innocent lives from the aggression of the Putin regime,” Heger said.
“However, the donation of this system does not mean that Slovakia has become part of the armed conflict,” he added. “And I would like to assure all the citizens of the Slovak Republic that the protection of our territory is sufficiently secure and will be reinforced in the coming days by another system from our allies.”
In a statement promising a substitute system to Slovakia, President Biden said in a statement; “I want to thank the Slovakian government for providing an S-300 air defense system to Ukraine, something [Ukrainian] President [Volodymyr] Zelensky has personally raised with me in our conversations.”
Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said in a statement that the missile defense system will be manned by U.S. service members, with both battery and crew expected to arrive in Slovakia “in coming days.” Their deployment length is not yet fixed, he added, as the U.S. continues to consult with the Slovakian government about more permanent air defense solutions.
“This deployment of Patriot capabilities to Slovakia aligns perfectly with our previous efforts to bolster NATO’s defensive capabilities and to demonstrate our collective security requirements under Article 5 of the NATO treaty,” he said. “It complements the NATO multinational battlegroup in eastern Slovakia, which includes air defense elements from Germany and the Netherlands.”
Along with the Patriot system comes a crew of about 100 U.S. soldiers, bringing the total U.S. troops mobilized to support NATO as Russia invades Ukraine to over 12,000. About 11,000 of those have deployed from the U.S., while the rest were already stationed in Europe.
The US has shipped tens of billions of dollars’ worth of weapons and other military aid to Ukraine in the last several weeks to bolster the Zelensky government’s fight against Russia. A number of European allies have also joined in sending military aid.
Wikipedia description of the missile systems
The MIM-104 Patriot is a surface-to-air missile (SAM) system, the primary of its kind used by the United States Army and several allied nations. It is manufactured by the U.S. defence contractor Raytheon and derives its name from the radar component of the weapon system. The AN/MPQ-53 at the heart of the system is known as the “Phased Array Tracking Radar to Intercept on Target” which is a backronym for PATRIOT. The Patriot system replaced the Nike Hercules system as the U.S. Army’s primary High to Medium Air Defense (HIMAD) system and replaced the MIM-23 Hawk system as the U.S. Army’s medium tactical air defence system. In addition to these roles, Patriot has been given the function of the U.S. Army’s anti-ballistic missile (ABM) system, which is now Patriot’s primary mission. The system is expected to stay fielded until at least 2040.
The S-300 (NATO reporting name SA-10 Grumble) is a series of initially Soviet and later Russian long range surface-to-air missile systems produced by NPO Almaz, based on the initial S-300P version. The S-300 system was developed to defend against aircraft and cruise missiles for the Soviet Air Defence Forces. Subsequent variations were developed to intercept ballistic missiles. The S-300 system was first deployed by the Soviet Union in 1979, designed for the air defence of large industrial and administrative facilities, military bases and control of airspace against enemy strike aircraft. The system is fully automated, though manual observation and operation are also possible.
Nnamdi Maduakor is a Writer, Investor and Entrepreneur
