Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky used a meeting Friday with top United States military leaders and 50 partner nations to call for yet more weaponry even as the Biden administration confirmed it would rush another $250 million in security assistance to Kyiv.
Zelensky added systems that were promised already have been too slow to arrive as he again stated his desire to directly strike at Russia deep behind its borders.
AP reports U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said the meeting of the leaders at the U.S. Ramstein Air Base in Germany was taking place during a dynamic moment in Ukraine’s fight against Russia, as it conducts its first offensive operations of the war while facing a significant threat from Russian forces near a key hub in the Donbas.
Zelensky used the public appearance to repeat his view that what’s needed most now is for the U.S. and the West to allow him to use the weapons they provided to reach inside Russia.
“We need to have this long-range capability, not only on the divided territory of Ukraine, but also on the Russian territory, so that Russia is motivated to seek peace,” Zelensky argued to the members.
“We need to make Russian cities and even Russian soldiers think about what they need: peace or Putin.”