UK minister urges allied boost to Ukraine's air defences ahead of winter
Wes Streeting calls for allies to mobilise materiel and cooperation ahead of winter, saying the season has become a tool in Moscow's campaign.
UK Defence Secretary Wes Streeting has urged allies to step up support for Ukraine's air-defence systems ahead of winter, warning that Russian President Vladimir Putin may try to use the season as a weapon against Kyiv.
Streeting visited Ukraine in early August 2026 to review Kyiv's winter preparations, a period when Moscow has in past years targeted the country's energy infrastructure to increase pressure on the government.
Writing in a recent piece, Streeting warned: "Winter in Ukraine is no longer a season. It is a weapon."
He added that, despite Russia currently losing the war that entered its fifth year, Moscow remains capable of using winter conditions to alter the situation. "The Ukrainians know what winter brings and how it can change the picture," he said.
"I return from Kyiv with a clear understanding of what Ukraine must go through this winter," Streeting wrote, and he underlined the United Kingdom's intention to supply resources where possible. "Where the United Kingdom can provide those resources, we will do so. And where we cannot, my job is to mobilise allies to find those opportunities."
Streeting said his task, together with his German counterpart Boris Pistorius, with whom he co-chairs the Contact Group on Defence for Ukraine, is to turn the goodwill of around 50 countries into concrete assistance: "My task, together with my German colleague Boris Pistorius, with whom I co-chair the Contact Group on Defence for Ukraine, is to turn the goodwill of around 50 countries into concrete help; to turn commitment into capability."
He emphasised that the effort must include "more resources for air defence." The Contact Group on Defence for Ukraine is expected to meet next in September, with replenishing air-defence stocks likely to be high on the agenda.
The minister's visit coincided with warnings that Ukraine is running low on key air-defence interceptors, notably US-produced Patriot missiles — among the systems capable of intercepting Russian ballistic missiles. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has appealed in recent weeks for additional interceptor missiles as sustained Russian bombardment depletes Kyiv's limited stocks.
Photo: press material from the event
