Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky has urged NATO leaders to give him permission to strike Russian territories with missiles, sparking fears a wider conflict could erupt as a result.
Ukrainian officials have for months pleaded with the country’s Western partners to supply it with further sophisticated air defence systems, especially US-made Patriots, so Kyiv’s forces can fend off Russian air assaults that have pummelled the country during the war.
Civilian areas as well as the power grid and military targets have repeatedly been hit. Speaking to the New York Times, Zelensky said: “We have our own weapons, our own drones, and we use them, but I would like to note that we do this for defence.
“And what we have always asked for President Biden, and not only President Biden but the leaders of many countries, is that we want to use the weapons for defence.
“How do we respond when they strike our cities? Their ability to strike from a distance is such because they are stationed in the villages nearest to the border of Ukraine with Russia.
“They strike from there, knowing that we will not return fire, knowing that they are using civilian populations as cover, because their weapons are located among the civilian population of the Russian Federation. But they proceed calmly, understanding that our partners do not give us permission.
“And here, when we talk about ATACMS or HIMARS, or we talk about artillery shells, or relevant missiles – Storm Shadow, Scalp, etc – we do not have permission to strike the territory of the Russian Federation, their military locations, headquarters, etc.
“It’s the same for air defence. How can we protect ourselves from constant strikes from Russian territory? They strike with missiles from Russian territory, up to 100 kilometres, away from a point in Ukraine or the border of Ukraine. How can we protect ourselves? We can either strike the missile that is entering Ukrainian territory, or strike the aircraft before launch.
“To strike the missile, we need air defence. To strike the aircraft, we need appropriate weapons. Weapons and permission.”
The Kremlin’s forces have used their advantage in the skies to debilitate Ukraine‘s power grid, hoping to sap Ukrainian morale and disrupt its defence industry.
Zelensky said that the Kremlin’s forces were still focusing their efforts on the eastern Donetsk province and northeastern Kharkiv region, where explosive-laden Russian glide bombs are wreaking destruction on military and civilian areas.
“This brings us back again and again to the need for air defence — for additional defence systems that could significantly mitigate the difficulties for our warriors and the threat to our cities and communities,” Zelensky said late Monday on social media.
He said that Ukraine’s forces are still in control of the contested areas, though Russia says it has captured a series of border villages.