“When there is air defense at the front, the military will move forward”
Volodymyr Zelensky denies “stalemate” in the war between Ukraine and Russia, which has been ongoing for over 600 days, rejects any possibility of dialogue with Vladimir Putin and relaunches: F-16s are needed to win. The positions on the ground appear crystallized, Kiev’s counter-offensive does not appear to have produced the desired ‘break’. According to rumors from NBCnews, details are filtering out from the USA relating to an initial international pressure on Ukraine to begin considering a negotiated solution with Moscow. However, on the day that the President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen arrives in Kiev, Zelensky does not change his line.
“This is not a stalemate. Russia controls the sky. We care about our soldiers, no one wants to abandon them like Russia does which uses them as cannon fodder. How to overcome all this? With F-16s, we have to wait for our kids to learn to use them. When there is air defense at the front, the military will move forward,” says the Ukrainian president.
“We have no right to surrender: what would be the alternative? Handing over a third of our country? It would only be the beginning”, he continues. “Everyone knows my position, which is the same as that of the Ukrainian people. Should we sit at the table with the Russians and make concessions? This will not happen”, we assure, adding that neither the United States nor the EU have ever put “pressure” in this sense . “Obviously … the war in the Middle East diverts attention” from the conflict in Ukraine, “I believe that this was one of the goals of the Russian Federation,” he notes.
For some days, there have been rumors about a possible trip by Zelensky to Israel. The trip is in doubt at this point after the news leak on the Israeli broadcaster Channel 12, as a Ukrainian diplomat explains to the Times of Israel. “He wanted the trip to become public only when he touched Israeli soil, now he is very disappointed,” adds the source.
Zelensky and Israeli Prime Minister Benyamin Netanyahu met in New York on the sidelines of the UN Assembly in September, but have never visited each other. Israel has in fact tried so far to maintain good relations with Moscow despite the war in Ukraine. With the conflict in Gaza, with Moscow ever closer to Iran and having received the leaders of Hamas, everything is changing.
Source-www.adnkronos.com