The systems will aid Ukraine in fending off Russian missile attacks.

For multiple months now, Ukraine has been requesting the delivery of Patriot missile defense systems from the United States in order to help them defend their territory from the ongoing Russian invasion. While the matter is not yet confirmed, pending approval by Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin, the US is currently poised to finally approve Ukraine’s request and send them the Patriot missiles.

BREAKING: U.S. officials say the Biden administration is poised to approve sending a Patriot missile battery to Ukraine, finally agreeing to an urgent request from Ukrainian leaders desperate for more robust weapons to shoot down incoming Russian fire. https://t.co/AWQjiYvc3n

— The Associated Press (@AP) December 13, 2022

If Ukraine receives these missiles, it will be much easier for them to intercept Russian missile attacks. This, in turn, will make it easier to defend both their military installations and civilian utilities, both of which have been repeated targets of Russian missiles.

“As we move into the winter, the amount of maneuver operations on the ground in the war is going to decrease for all the reasons that we know, weather, conditions and so on,” Jonathan Eyal, an associate director at the Royal United Services Institute think tank in London, told NBC News.

“So it’s very likely Russia is going to keep up pressure from the air by trying to systematically destroy Ukrainian infrastructure. So it is therefore very important for Ukraine’s Western backers to look again at Ukraine’s air defenses. The timing is important,” he said.

Exclusive: The Biden administration is finalizing plans to send the Patriot missile defense system to Ukraine to aid against Russian air attacks, officials say https://t.co/5pcNtJb4am

— CNN Politics (@CNNPolitics) December 13, 2022

In addition to the defensive applications, the delivery of the missiles would send a message to Russia that the US and Ukraine remain steadfast allies, in spite of the Kremlin’s best efforts.

“The political message to the Russians is that they can’t continue destroying Ukraine’s infrastructure with impunity, which is what Putin does every day. They can’t do that without the West delivering better and more sophisticated weapons to the Ukrainian military,” Eyal said.