Kyiv. Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky once again urged the US for more help, describing his country’s security against Russian aggression as a “critical juncture”. His statement comes at a time when the Russian army appears to be backing down on its promise to reduce its campaign.
Russian forces bombed Kyiv and areas around the northern city of Chernihiv and stepped up attacks in other parts of the country on Wednesday, raising doubts about any progress toward ending the war. The head of the Ukrainian delegation, David Arakhamia, said talks between Ukraine and Russia are expected to resume on Friday through digital means.
Meanwhile, a delegation of members of Ukraine’s parliament visited Washington to push for the US to increase aid. He said his country needed more military equipment, more financial aid, and tougher sanctions against Russia. “We need to drive out Russian troops from our soil, and for that we need weapons,” Anastasia Radina, a member of Ukraine’s parliament, told a news conference at the Ukrainian embassy.
Ukrainian President Zelensky made this demand directly to US President Joe Biden. “If we are really fighting for the defense of freedom and democracy, then we have the right to seek help at this difficult, critical juncture,” he said in a video address to the nation at night. Tanks, aircraft, guns are needed.” He addressed the nation standing outside the presidential office in Kyiv in dim light.
He thanked the United States for the additional $500 million in aid announced on Wednesday. Following the recent attacks by the Russian military, there seems little chance of a solution between Russia and Ukraine any time soon. Significantly, Russia said on Tuesday that it would cut its operations near Kyiv and Chernihiv.
The Russian military has intensified its attacks in the Donbas region in eastern Ukraine and around the city of Lycium. The city falls on the important road leading to Donbass. Chernihiv city council secretary Oleksandr Lomako said Russia’s announcement had proved “totally false”. “At night they did not reduce the military operation but intensified it,” he said.
Zelensky also said that he has withdrawn Ukrainian ambassadors from Georgia and Morocco, which shows that he has not been able to persuade these countries to support Ukraine and punish Russia for the attack. At the same time, US intelligence officials said Russian President Vladimir Putin has been misinformed by his advisers about the poor performance of the military in Ukraine because they too are too afraid to tell them the truth.
Germany’s government has said it has received assurances from Russia that European companies will not be required to pay in rubles in exchange for taking gas from Russia. Along with this, Poland has announced steps to end oil imports from Russia by the end of this year. The United Nations is looking into allegations that some residents of the southern city of Mariupol have been forcibly moved to areas controlled by Russian forces.