The United States on Thursday announced its approval of a $5 billion sale of up to 600 Patriot missiles and related equipment to Germany, which has donated several of the advanced air defense systems to Ukraine.

The proposed sale of the PAC-3 MSE missiles "will support the foreign policy and national security of the United States by improving the security of a NATO ally that is an important force for political and economic stability in Europe," the Defense Security Cooperation Agency (DSCA) said in a statement.

It "will improve Germany's capability to meet current and future threats and increase the defensive capabilities of its military. It will support Germany's goal of improving national and territorial defense as well as interoperability with US and NATO forces," the statement added.

The State Department approved the possible sale of the missiles to Germany, and the DSCA on Thursday provided the required notification to Congress, which still needs to sign off on the transaction.

Germany has donated several Patriot systems to Ukraine, which has faced repeated Russian missile barrages and drone attacks targeting its infrastructure, leaving it in desperate need of additional air defenses.

After the outbreak of the Ukraine war in 2022, Berlin dropped a traditionally pacifist stance and has become Kyiv's second-biggest supplier of military aid, after Washington.