The first NATO units tasked with the deployment of the Patriot air defense system have arrived in Slovakia, the Slovak daily Hospodárske noviny reported on Sunday.

Citing the country's Defense Minister Jaroslav Nad', it reports that the system will be deployed at the Sliač air base in central Slovakia.

The minister also noted that the Patriot system is not a replacement for the Soviet-made S-300 system, which is in service in Slovakia. According to him, it is another element of the country's airspace defense, reports Interfax.

The newspaper recalls that Germany and the Netherlands provided the Patriot system to Slovakia as part of a program to strengthen NATO's eastern flank.

Nad' said this week that Bratislava was ready to transfer the Soviet-made S-300 system to Ukraine, but on the condition that the Slovak army gets a replacement.

Earlier Poland had offered to send to Ukraine Soviet-made MiG-29 fighters, but also in exchange for more modern American planes. The Pentagon concluded that the transfer of these planes to Ukraine would not bring significant benefits to Kiev and could also lead to an escalation of relations with Russia.