Western powers are not pressing Kyiv to seek compromise with Moscow but they are emboldening the Kremlin by delaying military and financial aid to Ukraine, the country’s president Volodymyr Zelenskiy has said.
“There is no pressure from our partners to stop our defence...There is no pressure concerning freezing the conflict. So far there is none,” he said in Lithuania on Wednesday at the start of a visit to the three Baltic states, which are among Ukraine’s strongest allies.
He urged the West to “pay attention to the rhetoric” of Russian president Vladimir Putin, who in February 2022 launched an all-out invasion of Ukraine that has now killed tens of thousands of people and displaced millions of Ukrainian civilians. “He is not going to stop. He wants to occupy us completely. Sometimes partners’ uncertainty regarding the result of financial and military assistance for Ukraine [and the need for] a quick reaction...only gives courage and strength to the Russian Federation.”
Mr Zelenskiy said Russia had fired more than 500 missiles and explosive drones at Ukrainian cities and infrastructure facilities in the past fortnight, killing dozens of civilians, injuring hundreds and depleting Kyiv’s stock of western-supplied air defence munitions. “The thing that we and our partners cannot produce in the near future is modern air defence systems. That is what is seriously lacking... we can fight this enemy with technology while we are still forcing it from our land and the war is continuing, so air defence systems are the number one thing that we need.”
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Political disputes in the US Congress and the EU have blocked approval of tens of billions of dollars and euro in military and other support for Kyiv, fuelling fears that Ukraine’s defence will be compromised by lack of arms and pressure to ration ammunition.
“The presidents stated that Ukraine’s victory is the only path to peace, security and stability in Europe. That is why support for Ukraine should remain a top priority for the EU and Nato which have a shared responsibility to stop Russia’s aggression and hold Russia accountable for war crimes,” Mr Zelenskiy and Lithuanian counterpart Gitanas Nauseda said in a joint statement.
Mr Zelenskiy is scheduled to travel on to Latvia and Estonia before attending the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, next week as he tries to shore up international support for Ukraine before it enters its third year of full-scale war with Russia.
Italian defence minister Guido Crosetto said on Wednesday that “the time has come for incisive diplomacy, alongside military support [for Ukraine], because there are a number of important signals coming from both sides”.
It is not clear what signals he meant: Mr Zelenskiy’s ambition to liberate all Ukrainian territory is supported by most of his compatriots, according to surveys, while the Kremlin says no peace talks are possible until Kyiv accepts the occupation of vast swathes of its land.
“The full territorial integrity and recognised borders of Ukraine remain the goal of the entire international community,” Mr Crosetto added in comments to Italy’s parliament.
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