US delays vital weapons deliveries to Ukraine, Zelensky says

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said on October 19 that the U.S. Department of Defense is delaying deliveries of certain vital weapons to Ukraine, urging partners to accelerate support for air defense. Zelensky stated that some political agreements remain unimplemented at the working level, and assigned urgent tasks to defense and foreign ministers to contact partners. He expects concrete results after additional meetings following the day's contacts. Earlier, Zelensky told Bloomberg that Ukraine receives only 12 Patriot interceptor missiles monthly, about four times fewer than under the Biden administration. Tensions have risen since October 9, including U.S. threats to halt intelligence sharing and Starlink restrictions.