The US State Department has approved a possible sale of 500 Patriot missiles to Ukraine. The timing of actual deliveries is still unclear. In addition to the shells, the sale of related equipment is also planned, according to a press release on the department's website. The total amount of the deal will be about 2.1 billion dollars. The main contractor will be the American arms manufacturer Lockheed Martin, and Canada, Germany and Norway will finance the deal. Part of the amount will be covered by a loan that the European Union will grant to Ukraine. "The use of US government funds is not anticipated in this transaction," the State Department said. Referring to this statement, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky confirmed that Kiev had asked Washington to supply Patriot missiles by winter at the rate of 100 munitions per month. However, the terms of the deal announced by the United States, he said, indicate that shipments "could start in a few years." In this context, Zelensky asked the American side to provide missiles now. "The United States, Europe and other partners around the world have enough interceptors in stock," he wrote.