Deploying in Ukraine Patriot air defense systems, intended for Poland, is possible only after consultations with NATO 

This was stated by German Defense Minister Christine Lambrecht in Berlin, Reuters reports.

"These Patriots are part of NATO's integrated air defense, which means they are intended for deployment on NATO territory," Lambrecht said.

"Any use outside of NATO territory will require prior discussion with NATO and allies," she added.

Berlin offered Warsaw the Patriot missile defense system after a missile landed in Poland last week during a Russian attack on Ukraine, killing two people.

Polish Defense Minister Mariusz Blaszczak said on Wednesday that he had asked Germany to send the Patriot to Ukraine instead.

"After new Russian missile strikes, I asked Germany to transfer Patriot batteries, offered to Poland, to Ukraine and place them on its western border," Blaszczak wrote on Twitter.

Ground-based air defense systems, such as Raytheon's Patriot, are designed to intercept incoming missiles.  But NATO lacks such systems, as many NATO allies have reduced their numbers since the Cold War to reflect an assessment that they now have to deal with only a limited missile threat from countries like Iran.

This perception changed dramatically after Russia's invasion of Ukraine, which forced NATO allies to urgently increase ammunition stocks and solve problems with air defense systems.