EU says it cannot disburse Patriot missile funds as Ukraine's signed contracts are still missing
European Commission spokesperson Balázs Ujváry said on September 18 that the Commission has not yet received signed contracts from Ukraine for Patriot interceptor missiles, and therefore cannot make the corresponding payments from the €90 billion Ukraine Support Loan mechanism. Patriot procurement was only approved the previous week, he said, and once contracts arrive the Commission will review them and pay from the loan's defense portion, expected to reach €28.3 billion in 2026. A separate €3.3 billion disbursement for drones and missiles was confirmed the same day, bringing 2026 EU defense payments from the loan to €11.7 billion.
Key points
- EU Commission spokesperson Balázs Ujváry said on September 18 that signed Ukrainian contracts for Patriot interceptors have not yet reached Brussels.
- Without the contracts, the Commission cannot make corresponding payments from the €90 billion Ukraine Support Loan mechanism.
- Patriot procurement was approved only the previous week; once contracts arrive, the Commission will review them and pay from the loan's defense portion.
- The defense portion of the loan is projected at €28.3 billion in 2026.
- Current EU payments from the loan cover earlier production schedules focused on drones, missiles and fighter jets.
- On September 18 the Commission confirmed a separate €3.3 billion disbursement for drones and missiles, the fourth under the €90 billion loan.
- The €3.3 billion tranche brought 2026 EU defense payments from the loan to €11.7 billion.
Why it matters
Patriot interceptors are central to Ukraine's defense against ballistic missile strikes, and deliveries have already fallen sharply this year. The €90 billion Ukraine Support Loan is a major source of EU defense financing, with the defense portion projected at €28.3 billion in 2026. The gap between approval of the Patriot line item and signed contracts is currently the administrative obstacle to disbursement, and the delay sits in the broader context of constrained Western missile supplies, with partners citing Middle East operations and US stockpile preservation as limiting factors.
What happened
At a Commission briefing on September 18, spokesperson Balázs Ujváry said the European Commission had approved the financing of Patriot interceptor missiles for Ukraine only the previous week, but has not yet received the signed contracts from the Ukrainian side. Because of that, the Commission cannot make the corresponding payments from the €90 billion Ukraine Support Loan mechanism. Ujváry said that once the contracts arrive, the Commission will review them and pay from the loan's defense portion, which is projected at €28.3 billion in 2026, and added that Patriot-related payments will likely come a bit later, as the related production schedules have only just been approved. Current EU disbursements under the loan cover earlier production schedules focused on drones, missiles and fighter jets. On the same day the Commission confirmed a separate €3.3 billion tranche for drones and missiles — the fourth under the overall loan — bringing 2026 EU defense payments from the loan to €11.7 billion.
Where reporting differs
Article 25872 describes the Ukraine Support Loan as 90 billion dollars, while articles 25507 and 25554 describe it as 90 billion euros.
Background
Most sources describe the Ukraine Support Loan as €90 billion, with €6.1 billion previously approved for drones and missiles, including PAC-3 interceptors for Patriot. On September 3 Ukraine submitted its request to purchase Patriot interceptor missiles, and on September 7 the European Commission was reported to have approved it, with Ujváry's briefing taking place on September 18. On September 18 the Commission confirmed a separate €3.3 billion disbursement for drones and missiles, bringing 2026 EU defense payments from the loan to €11.7 billion. President Zelensky has stated that Ukraine has received three times fewer ballistic-defense missiles this year than last year.