A senior aide to Ukraine’s president said Kyiv was looking to Tokyo for ‘defence cooperation’ to operate the American air defence system
1-MIN READ1-MIN ListenKyodoPublished: 1:23pm, 25 Jul 2026Ukraine hopes to gain support from Japan as it looks to produce Patriot air defence systems under US licence, citing the expertise of Mitsubishi Heavy Industries that manufactures the interceptors for the Japanese defence forces, according to an aide to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.
“We maintain political dialogue” towards seeking cooperation from Japan, which is one of the few countries granted a licence to build the Patriot surface-to-air missile system, Sergiy Kyslytsya, first deputy head of Ukraine’s Office of the President, said in an interview with Kyodo News on Friday.
US President Donald Trump pledged in early July to grant Ukraine a licence to manufacture Patriot systems, seen as crucial for Kyiv to counter missile attacks amid Russia’s invasion that has entered its fifth year.
While Ukraine has the capabilities to operate a complex defence system, Kyslytsya said, “We need training. We need assistance.”
The senior Ukrainian official also emphasised that Patriots are “defensive” and therefore, Japan, a country that upholds a pacifist constitution, should have no legislative “constraints” regarding such “defence cooperation”.
He refrained from making comments on whether Ukraine was holding discussions with MHI, the primary contractor that produces Patriots under licence in Japan.
