Ukraine is Getting the Patriot — With a Big, Red Target Painted on it for Russia

The Army test fires a Patriot missile in a recent test. Public domain

The Patriot! No, not the questionable 2000 action movie starring Mel Gibson and Heath Ledger… Today, we’re talking about the legendary surface-to-air missile system.

Over the past two months, Ukraine’s power and water infrastructure have been getting slammed by Iranian-made drones and Russian cruise missiles.

It’s easy to understand why Putin isn’t spending his limited munitions on military targets: he’s an asshole. He believes that if he makes the civilian population suffer, it might make regime change in Kyiv easier.

Clearly, he hasn’t thought that strategy through — this isn’t Syria, it’s Ukraine.

There aren’t multiple factions vying for control. They are one people who are unified in their opposition to Russian occupation.

Still, it’s clear that Ukraine needs more missile defenses.

In a recent article, I listed the possible missile defense systems that the West could send to help Ukraine defend against Russia’s onslaught.

One of the systems I mentioned was the MIM-104 Patriot missile battery — the gold standard for ballistic missile defense.

Admittedly, I predicted the West wouldn’t send any Patriots because of several big…