After the end of the Rammstein-style meeting in Germany, the President of Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelenskyi, arrived in Italy for a visit to participate in the International Economic Forum “Ambrosetti”.
Head of state turned to to international partners with a request to allow Ukraine to use long-range weapons for strikes on military facilities on the territory of Russia. He emphasized that this is the only way to defend against thousands of guided aerial bombs (UAVs) that Russian troops drop on Ukraine every month.
Zelenskyi expressed gratitude to the partners for the transferred air defense systems, including STAMP-T, which play an important role in the protection of Ukrainian cities and facilities. However, the president emphasized that Ukraine needs permission to use long-range weapons for pinpoint strikes on military targets in Russia, assuring that Ukraine’s targets have always been only military targets.
Earlier, the head of state noted that obtaining permission to use long-range weapons depends on four key countries — the United States, Great Britain, France and Germany.
Speaking at the “Ambrozetti” forum, Volodymyr Zelenskyy emphasized that even if the allies get permission to strike on Russian territory, Ukraine will not have the opportunity to attack the Kremlin. The president explained that this is impossible due to the limited range of the existing missiles.
“When we talk about the fact that Italy or someone else is afraid that we will hit the Kremlin, I am sorry that we cannot do that. Because this long-range weapon that you or your partners have is about 200 kilometers . This is less than the distances that Tajani talked about (the head of the Foreign Ministry of Italy, – ed.) But you must understand that I am joking. This is very serious.”, – explained Zelensky.
Zelensky reported that Russian troops drop more than 4,000 aerial bombs on the eastern regions of Ukraine every month. He also noted that the bombers from which these bombs are launched are located at airfields 100, 150 and even 300 kilometers from the Ukrainian border.
“We want to use long-range weapons against them, against these military airfields. There are no other ideas. We are not targeting civilians. They are our enemies because they support Putin’s policies, but we have never, ever hit their civilian infrastructure.”, – the president emphasized.
In response to a question about possible factors that could force Putin to start negotiations, Zelenskyy again turned to the topic of the Kursk operation, emphasizing its significance in the context of pressure on the Kremlin.
“You can understand a leader who, when there are certain troops on your territory (as in Kursk), does not move troops from other territories to protect his people, but continues to occupy another state. What can you say about such a leader?”, – he remarked.
Speaking about the conditions for starting a dialogue with Russia, Zelenskyi noted that Ukraine must enter the negotiations with strong positions, because otherwise it risks losing not only people, but also territories.
“First of all, he is a murderer. We must rely on the UN charter and international law. But everyone understands that he is a liar, and the price of his word is zero. This is not only about negotiations. It is about rules. And we must work on them What is important – Ukraine must be very strong for any negotiations, otherwise we will lose our state and our people. This is a war for people, for our values.”, – emphasized Zelensky.
