The United States has carried about 90 Patriot anti -missile systems from Israel to Poland this week to subsequently hand over to Ukraine, the Axios news network said on Tuesday, citing three sources with the knowledge of the business.

The supply of more Patriot missiles to Ukraine was a top priority for the Pentagon to help Kiev defend Russia’s attacks on critical infrastructure.

It is also the most important tradition of weapons from Israel to Ukraine from the Russian invasion almost three years ago.

Last April, the Israeli Air Force officially released the Patriot air defense system, which used more than 30 years after being first given to Israel during the first Gulf War.

The system became less useful as Israel developed its own air defense systems and most Patriot arrays were used for training or remained in equipment warehouses.

Sources told Axios that after IDF announced the decommissioning, Ukrainian officials approached the US and Israel proposing to give Israel the rocket back to the US and sent to Ukraine

For several months, Israel was worried that Russia would react, perhaps providing sophisticated weapons to Iran.

A Ukrainian official told Axios that Benyamin Netanyahu rejected the call of Kiev for weeks. At the end of September, he approved the mission, but said an Israeli official.
At that time, Netanyahu wanted to talk to Ukrainian President Volodimir Zelenski to get his approval for the Ukraine’s Ukraine, where a famous rabbi is buried.

Zelenski also rejected the request until Netanyahu approves the deal for Patriot, says the Ukrainian official.

However, a spokesman for Netanyahu told Axios that the prime minister did not object to the decommissioning of the Patriot system and his return to the US and denied any relationship between the Ukrainian demand and the proposal for the pilgrimage.

The Pentagon refused to comment on information, as did a spokesman for the US European Administration.

At the same time, Axios reports that a senior Israeli official said Israel informed Russia in advance of the movement and stressed that “only the Patriot system is returning to the US” and does not supply Ukraine weapons.

The official said Israel told Russia that it was a similar move to the US two years ago when they were transporting artillery missiles from Israel to Ukraine.

A spokesman for the Israeli Prime Minister’s office confirmed that a Patriot system was returned to the US, adding that “it is not known to us if it was delivered to Ukraine.”

In recent days, US Air Force C-17 aircraft arrived at an air base in southern Israel and departed for Rzeszów in Eastern Poland, a hub for weapons to Ukraine.

Sources reported that the flight carried about 90 patriots that could be used by Ukraine with its arrays already.

Additional equipment, such as radar and other equipment, will be transferred first to the US for maintenance.

Zelenski and Netanyahu spoke on Tuesday and the Ukrainian president wrote on Twitter that they had discussed the release of hostages under the Gaza ceasefire agreement.

“We also discussed maintaining close contact with the partners, especially the United States and President Trump. We looked at current bilateral issues and agreed to maintain close contact in the near future,” Zelenski added.