Polish Ministry of Defense: Błaszczak did not say that Patriot batteries have already arrived in Ukraine

In response to an information request, Ukrinform was informed of the situation by Poland’s Ministry of National Defense.

"The intention of the Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of National Defense Mariusz Błaszczak was to point out (in an interview with La Razon - ed.) that thanks to the efforts of Poland, a decision was made to supply the Patriot battery," the ministry said, emphasizing that the first Polish Leopard tanks are already in Ukraine.

The ministry added that the mention of Ukraine receiving the Patriot system from the Polish minister was apparently due to a translation error.

Earlier it was reported that Polish Defense Minister Mariusz Błaszczak said this in an interview with the Spanish newspaper La Razon.

"Due to Poland's efforts, Patriot batteries and the first Leopard tanks arrived in Ukraine," he said.

Błaszczak noted that Poland is not only the main point of transfer of aid to Ukraine, but also one of the largest donors.

According to him, since the beginning of the full-scale war, Poland has sent 2.2 billion euros worth of weapons to Ukraine. The amount does not include the costs incurred for the Ukrainian military training and the latest armored vehicles package, which includes Leopard 2A4 tanks.

Błaszczak also spoke about aircraft for Ukraine. According to him, such decisions should be made at the broader level.

• As of March 5th, two Ukrainian pilots are undergoing skill evaluations on aircraft simulators, including the F-16, at a US military base.