Germany will send an additional Patriot air defense system to Ukraine, the German Federal Ministry of Defense said Saturday.

"Due to the increase in Russian airstrikes against Ukraine, the German government has decided to further strengthen Ukrainian air defense," a statement from the ministry said.

Ukraine has received several air defense systems during the first two years of war, including the US-made Patriot system to help defend against Russian drone and cruise missile attacks.

Kyiv says it needs 25 Patriot units total to cover the country —  and at least seven urgently, according to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.

On Friday, the US said it would sell Ukraine up to $138 million (€129.3 million) of equipment to maintain and upgrade its HAWK air defense systems.

Washington began shipping HAWK interceptor missiles to Ukraine in 2022 as an upgrade to the shoulder-launched Stinger air defense missile systems — a smaller, shorter-range system.

mm/wd (Reuters, AP, AFP, dpa)