Zelenskyy: Ukraine asks for 1% of NATO planes and for 1% of its tanks
"EUROPEAN PRAVDA" - THURSDAY, 24 MARCH 2022, 12:30
The President of Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, appealed to the North Atlantic Alliance with a request to provide weapons to protect against the Russian attack, revealing the details of the Ukrainian request.
According to a European Pravda correspondent, Zelenskyy during his speech at the NATO summit on 24 March reminded NATO leaders that Russia is highly militarised and many times more powerful [than Ukraine] in terms of technology.
"Over the decades, Russia has amassed considerable resources. Military resources ... equipment, bombs and missiles. They invested a lot of money in death while the world invested in life," he said, explaining that Ukraine needed Western support.
Ukrainian president stressed that it is Ukraine’s second appeal to NATO during this war; the first time he addressed the Alliance was a month ago, on 24 February.
A meeting of the NATO-Ukraine Commission took place that day, but the content of Zelenskyy’s appeal was not known.
"On 24 February, I addressed you with a perfectly clear, logical request: to help close our skies; to protect our people from Russian bombs and missiles. We have not heard a clear answer," he rebuked.
Volodymyr Zelenskyy revealed the details of Ukraine's request to save Ukrainian cities and their populations from destruction. "Ukraine needs military assistance - without restrictions. Since Russia is using its entire arsenal against us without restrictions", he explained.
"Ukraine does not have powerful anti-missile weapons; it has much fewer aircraft than Russia ... Ukraine appealed to you for planes, so that we do not lose so many people. You have thousands of fighter planes! But they did not give us any."
We asked for tanks, so that we can unblock our cities, where Russia is holding hundreds of thousands of people hostage, creating artificial hunger, literally reducing residential neighbourhoods to ashes. You have at least 20,000 tanks! Ukraine has asked for one percent of all your tanks! Give or sell to us. But we have not received a clear answer ... ", said Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
Zelenskyy further stressed that he asked NATO to provide Ukraine with one percent of Alliance aircraft, as well as volley fire systems, anti-ship weapons and air defences.
The President stressed that Ukraine is grateful to all allies for the military assistance already provided, but it is not enough to effectively stop the Russian attack.
As reported, the Secretary General of the Alliance on Thursday confirmed that NATO does not plan to close the sky over Ukraine with Allied forces. Although there is a NATO decision to supply air defence systems to Ukraine from Slovakia, the completion of this supply is unknown. At the same time, the Congress calls on Biden to provide Ukraine with air defence systems and fighters.
