[Goose]

https://www.yahoo.com/news/ukraine-russi...34110.html

This is a fine announcement, but nowhere does it discuss timelines. I have no idea what the present manufacturing capability for Patriot is in the EU, but I suspect it is 0. It has probably been a while since anybody bought Patriot missiles in Europe. Poland got some recently, but they were US made (I am pretty sure as they came with newly delivered systems). The capability to manufacture such missiles in the EU existed, and can undoubtedly be reconstituted. How long that will take I have no idea, but it won't be soon. The previous capability also didn't need to make a lot of missiles real fast, so it's scale was inadequate to build 1000 missiles rapidly. It will undoubtedly be too late to matter for Ukraine.

The NATO Support and Procurement Agency said the new contract would see a missile production facility set up in Germany by a joint venture between Germany's MBDA and Raytheon, part of the US group RTX.

says it all.

The political class as a rule wants to make announcements that will appear to "solve" problems. Whether the problem is actually going to be solved, or even actually addressed, doesn't matter to them. That might work OK with social problems or economic problems, at least in the short term.  In war, it never does. Too bad the politicians and the public seem to be unaware of that fact.

[Goose]

https://www.yahoo.com/news/ukraine-russi...34110.html

This is a fine announcement, but nowhere does it discuss timelines. I have no idea what the present manufacturing capability for Patriot is in the EU, but I suspect it is 0. It has probably been a while since anybody bought Patriot missiles in Europe. Poland got some recently, but they were US made (I am pretty sure as they came with newly delivered systems). The capability to manufacture such missiles in the EU existed, and can undoubtedly be reconstituted. How long that will take I have no idea, but it won't be soon. The previous capability also didn't need to make a lot of missiles real fast, so it's scale was inadequate to build 1000 missiles rapidly. It will undoubtedly be too late to matter for Ukraine.

The NATO Support and Procurement Agency said the new contract would see a missile production facility set up in Germany by a joint venture between Germany's MBDA and Raytheon, part of the US group RTX.

says it all.

The political class as a rule wants to make announcements that will appear to "solve" problems. Whether the problem is actually going to be solved, or even actually addressed, doesn't matter to them. That might work OK with social problems or economic problems, at least in the short term.  In war, it never does. Too bad the politicians and the public seem to be unaware of that fact.