Editor's note: This is a developing story and is being updated.
Ukraine's supply of Patriot interceptor missiles has reached a critical low, multiple media outlets reported on Oct. 15 citing Ukrainian officials, as Russia intensifies attacks on energy infrastructure ahead of the upcoming winter months.
A Ukrainian official told the Washington Post that "only a couple" of Patriot missiles remain, after its Oct. 7 supply of ten missiles was depleted in Russian attacks on Kyiv. While CNN reported, citing a source familiar with the situation, that Kyiv's supply of missiles has completely run dry.
The Kyiv Independent was not immediately able to verify the number of interceptor missiles remaining.
While varying reports cite differing figures on the number of interceptor missiles remaining, Kyiv's critical shortage of air defense munitions, particularly of Patriots — the only weapons capable of reliably intercepting Russian ballistic missiles — appears evident amid the uptick of Russian strikes on the Ukrainian capital.
Days prior on Oct. 13-14, Russia launched yet another large-scale ballistic missile attack on Kyiv targeting all three of the city's combined heat and power stations, as well as critical infrastructure in the Kyiv Oblast that provide power to Kyiv and central regions, with 39 ballistic missiles. The attack killed three women and injured another 25 people.
The source told CNN that nearly all of the Russian missiles slipped through Ukrainian air defenses amid a lack of Patriot interceptor missiles.
President Volodymyr Zelensky has repeatedly called on allies to supply more of the U.S.-made Patriot missiles to Kyiv amid Russia's unrelenting attacks.
Zelensky said in August amid initial appeals during the shortage that Ukraine could destroy all Russian ballistic missiles if the United States were to sell Kyiv 10% of its Patriot interceptor missile stockpile.
Optimism grew in Kyiv in September amid Zelensky's announcement that U.S. President Donald Trump had approved granting Ukraine licenses to produce Patriot air defense missiles.
In recent weeks, however, tensions between the U.S. and Ukraine have continued to grow, leading to uncertainty in future relations between Kyiv and Washington.
Trump harshly criticized Zelensky in an interview on Oct. 15 describing the Ukrainian president as "not a good guy for (the U.S.) to deal with."
The comments come as Ukraine-U.S. relations hit a low point after Trump blamed Ukrainian strikes against Russian refineries for the rising global fuel prices — a claim disputed by experts — and his team threatened to cut off intelligence support and arms shipments unless Kyiv halts the attacks.
Washington then unexpectedly unveiled a deal allowing Moscow to export diesel fuel to the U.S. and other markets despite sanctions imposed due to the full-scale invasion of Ukraine.
A few days later, on Oct. 11, Trump unilaterally announced an energy truce between Russia and Ukraine, taking Ukrainian officials by surprise.
Even as Kyiv backed the truce and said it had paused its strikes against Russian refineries since the announcement, Moscow has continued attacking the Ukrainian power grid, meeting no criticism from Trump.
"I think Trump's advisers are wrong. I don't know who is pushing him to the wrong side," Zelensky said.