Ukraine's Security and Defence Council tells allies not to fear Russia, or "war will be lost"

Oleksii Danilov, Secretary of Ukraine’s National Security and Defence Council, has urged Ukraine’s allies to "show no fear" of Russia, warning that this could lead to the war being lost.

Source: Oleksii Danilov in an interview with Lusa, a Portuguese news outlet; RTP

Quote from Danilov: "You should never be afraid, and right now many countries are afraid of the war and afraid of Russia."

"The situation on the frontline is very difficult. It hasn’t been easy since 24 February 2022, and if some people think that it’s easy to be on the front, those people don’t understand war."

Details: Danilov said that "Russia is being helped by North Korea and Iran, and this has led to certain changes in the current situation".

He warned that if the Western world does not significantly ramp up its weapons and ammunition supplies for Ukraine, "the situation will become a lot more difficult". When asked what the most pressing needs of the Ukrainian army were, Danilov said: "We need weapons, weapons, weapons."

He said that "expectations obviously always influence" what happens on the battlefield.

"If you ask us whether we will stop, we won’t stop, we will defend our country. We have no other choice, no other option. And we really hope that our partners will realise that it’s not just our independence that’s under threat, but also the image, authority, and unity of the entire West," Danilov said.

He added that he was "more than certain" that the US will vote in favour of a new military aid package for Ukraine in the near future.

"The US really is crucially important for us. After our victory, we will be grateful to everyone, everyone who is helping us achieve it," Security and Defence Council Secretary said.

When talking about the possible delivery of US-made F-16 fighter jets, Danilov said it was a "very sensitive issue" for Ukrainian forces currently engaged in combat.

"We really want to be stronger than our enemy, which currently has an advantage in the skies over Ukraine, because they have more aircraft. It will be difficult for us to keep fighting unless we match their numbers," Danilov admitted.

In a comment about the Ukrainian forces’ and general public’s morale, Danilov said that "it’s been very difficult to fight the aggressor for these two years", but added that "Ukraine has no right to lose".

"It won’t be true if I tell you that everyone is very motivated. Everyone is experiencing their own feelings and has different morale and motivation. But overall, in the future everyone will have a positive view of the situation," Danilov said, then added: "Dawn breaks after every dark night, and sunlight appears. I hope that soon we will see a sunrise."

Support UP or become our patron!