President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky described the announcement of the delivery of the Patriot air defense system by Germany as a "significant step forward."

"We have a significant step forward by Germany to strengthen the security not only of Ukraine, but of the whole of Europe, first of all, the region bordering Russia. Strengthening our air defense is direct work for de-escalation here and now," he said in a video statement on Friday.

"The less Russia has the ability to terrorize peaceful cities, the less will be the overall potential for Russian aggression. I thank Chancellor Scholz for the decision to provide Ukraine with the Patriot air defense system. Together with the shiny German IRIS-Ts, the Patriots will make the Ukrainian and European skies much safer," he said.

"We also discussed other aspects – 40 Marders, which are necessary to stop Russian aggression," he said.