The latest on the war in Ukraine:
long-range missiles
Europe Press. The German authorities have not yet responded to the Ukrainian government’s request for the supply of ‘Taurus’ model long-range or cruise missiles, and have stressed that Berlin is “very cautious” with the shipment of these weapons capabilities.
“We are very cautious, I have always made it clear. And nothing has changed from that point of view”, stated the German Defense Minister, Boris Pistorius, according to the local newspaper ‘Der Tagesspiegel’.
Already over the weekend, the Ukrainian authorities requested the supply of ‘Taurus’ missiles from Berlin to be able to defend themselves more successfully against the attacks perpetrated by Russia in the framework of the invasion of Ukraine, which began at the end of February 2022.
Ukrainian President Volodimir Zelensky also assured over the weekend that his Armed Forces have reached a much higher level of modernization than had been anticipated six months ago.
Defense Minister Oleksei Reznikov has already assured this week that the ‘Taurus’ model long-range missiles, which have a range of 500 kilometers, “are necessary” for the Ukrainian victory in the war against Russia.
“A peace plan cannot be prepared by the aggressor”
The President of Ukraine, Volodimir Zelensky, has assured that the Ukrainian authorities are “extremely interested” in the peace proposals put forward by various members of the international community, but has stressed that all of them must be based on the peace alternative formulated by Kiev .
“In war, there is an aggressor and there is a victim. There is one that starts the war and enters the territory of another State. A peace plan cannot be prepared by the aggressor, it is prepared by those who have suffered. The war is in our land, so the Peace Formula can only be ours”, he stated.
During a meeting with journalists on the sidelines of the summit of the European Political Community in Moldova, Zelenski specified that his peace proposal, however, is not final and that it is open to modifications as a result of diplomatic exchanges and if there is not “talk with missiles, like Russia.”
At this point, the Ukrainian president has valued the collaboration of other countries that want to join the efforts to end the war, which began at the end of February 2022 by order of the Russian president, Vladimir Putin.
“They have every right to present their initiatives, and we will be grateful if they come to us without imposing, but offering. This is a dialogue”, President Zelenski added, the Ukrainian Presidency stated.
However, Zelenski has warned that they will not attend to the proposals made by countries related to Russia and through which the Kremlin seeks to influence the end of the war. “We can see the pattern right away,” he said.
Since the outbreak of the war in Ukraine, several countries have applied as mediators to reach an end to hostilities. Many others have even come to formulate an alternative for peace, although it is true that none of them has been entirely to kyiv’s liking.
Some of the most prominent, such as that of Brazil or China, make the end of the war conditional on Ukraine ceding part of its territory to Moscow by allowing Russian troops to settle in their current positions.
Zelensky, for his part, presented months ago a peace formula based on ten points and which included respect for the territorial integrity of Ukraine, returning to the international borders recognized before the Russian annexation of Crimea. He also pointed to certain security guarantees.
After the F-16 fighters
President Zelenski, has demanded before almost fifty European leaders new steps for the creation of a “coalition of fighters” that allows the supply of modern F-16 type aircraft, in a call for unity for the sake of “values ” common: “We must remember that every doubt we show in Europe is a trench that Russia will undoubtedly try to occupy”.
“Whether they are doubts about vital security steps, about our unity or about our ability to face challenges, each one of them implies more insecurity,” Zelenski said in the debate at the European Policy Conference in Moldova, where he attended to receive the explicit support and in person of dozens of leaders of the continent.
In the political field, Zelensky believes that it is time for NATO to grant a “clear invitation” to Ukraine to join the Atlantic Alliance, a bloc that Russia “fears”, in a message for the leaders’ summit that will take place. place in Vilnius in July. He also expects the Ukrainian president a “clear positive decision” at the EU level, beyond the granting of the current candidate status.
In the field of weapons, Zelensky has highlighted the importance of the Patriot systems to put an end to the “blackmail” of Russia with ballistic missiles and to create a coalition of fighters. He considers that the advances in both aspects “are literally accelerating peace” in Ukraine, which has suffered a Russian military offensive since February 2022.
On the margins of this summit in Moldova, Zelenski took the opportunity to meet with the British Prime Minister, Rishi Sunak, one of the European leaders who, together with his predecessor, Boris Johnson, has been most committed to the conflict in Ukraine and has put the most pressure on for raising arms supplies to Kiev.
In fact, Zelensky has thanked Sunak not only for his support in war material, but also for his “leadership in the creation of tank and aviation coalitions”, for lending himself to train Ukrainian pilots in the handling of Western combat aircraft and for supplying Storm Shadow long-range missiles.
After months of appeals to his allied European countries, Zelenski managed to hold an informal meeting this Thursday in which the prime ministers of the Netherlands, Poland, Denmark, Sweden and Belgium were present, as well as the aforementioned Sunak, and in the that this “aircraft coalition” was dealt with.
Thus, the leaders have agreed to start “in the near future” the training of Ukrainian pilots not only in handling F-16 fighters, but also in other types of aircraft; and have discussed the possible supply of combat aircraft and the creation of the necessary infrastructure for them in Ukraine.
