Following passage in the House of a major military aid package for Ukraine, President Volodymyr Zelensky said Sunday that his country will only be able to repel an anticipated Russian offensive if the U.S. weapons arrive quickly.
Zelensky said his forces are preparing for a significant battle in the east of the country, where Russia aims to capture the city of Chasiv Yar by May 9, the holiday when Russia marks the Soviet Union’s victory over Nazi forces in World War II.
Zelensky told NBC’s “Meet the Press” that his soldiers are outgunned and “lack equipment they need to fight Russian reconnaissance drones, which essentially guide their artillery.” He said Ukrainian forces lack long-range weapons of their own, as well as adequate air defenses, and indicated that while U.S. lawmakers debated the aid package, Ukraine lost time and momentum.
“We’ve had the process stalled for half a year and we had losses in several directions, in the east. It was very difficult and we did lose the initiative there,” Zelensky said. “Now we have all the chance to stabilize the situation and to take the initiative, and that’s why we need to actually have the weapon systems.”
The $60 billion aid package had stalled because of bitter infighting among Republicans over whether to side with Ukraine against Russia, which invaded the country more than two years ago. Officials in Washington and Kyiv have warned that Ukraine’s front-line units were rationing a rapidly evaporating stockpile of armaments and that soon Moscow would have a 10-to-1 advantage in artillery rounds.
Notably, Zelensky did not give a timeline for when his forces might regain an advantage on the battlefield once they receive the weapons, nor did he say that the additional support would be decisive in the war.
“I think this support will really strengthen the armed forces of Ukraine and we will have a chance for victory,” Zelensky said.
Thanking House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.), whose support for the package has threatened his leadership position, as well as President Biden, Zelensky urged the Senate to act so weapons can be sent to Ukraine “as fast as possible so that we get some tangible assistance for the soldiers on the front line as soon as possible, not in another six months, so that they would be able to move ahead.” Senate Majority Leader Charles E. Schumer (D-N.Y.) said Saturday that the first votes on the $95 billion aid package would take place Tuesday afternoon.
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