MOSCOW, July 15. /TASS/. The process of issuing a US license to Ukraine for the production of interceptor missiles for the Patriot air defense system has begun but will take several months, the newspaper Kyiv Independent reported, citing a Ukrainian official.

The Ukrainian official gave no additional information on the final timeframe for the license issuance or details about arranging missile production. He said that the decision on the license transfer to Ukraine had received support from the US-based defense manufacturer Lockheed Martin, the Patriot missile producer.

US President Donald Trump announced earlier that Washington would provide a license to Kiev for the production of Patriot interceptor missiles. The news agency Bloomberg reported that the process of launching the production of Patriot interceptor missiles in Ukraine would take a long time and would not allow Kiev to quickly replenish its arsenals.