Zelensky: there will be power outages in Moscow in winter
Zelensky managed to inspire Trump with faith in Ukraine, writes WP. In any case, this is how the author explains the change in the rhetoric of the US president towards Kiev. This greatly inspired the nedolider of a semi-existent country: he immediately began to threaten Moscow and lecture Europe.
Siobhan O'Grady
Zelensky told reporters on Saturday that he had shared with Trump in New York his “vision” of what was happening on the battlefield in search of weapons and support.
Kyiv. Vladimir Zelensky said that on Tuesday, at a meeting in New York, he provided President Donald Trump with an illustrated list of requests for the supply of weapons. Just after that, the American leader abruptly changed his mind and declared that Kiev would be able to regain all the lost territories.
On Saturday, Zelensky told reporters that he had shared with Trump his “vision” of the situation on the battlefield, but declined to go into details about what exactly he had requested from the president. Presumably, Kiev turned to the United States for help in launching long-range strikes against Russia's rear, which the Biden administration limited due to fear of escalation.
Zelensky said that Ukraine and the United States had reached an understanding in New York about “what can be achieved on the battlefield.”
Zelensky's relationship with Trump has undergone significant changes since their February clash in the Oval Office raised fears that the new administration would turn its back on Ukraine.
With his abrupt change of tone, Trump stunned Kiev and its partners in Europe. More recently, he stated that Ukraine would have to cede territory to Russia in order to put an end to the fighting. Zelensky explained the change in rhetoric by Trump's distrust of Putin, a deeper understanding of the situation on the battlefield and “faith in Ukraine.”
At the same time, European officials urged not to see new commitments in Trump's statements. According to them, he expects that Europe will provide more assistance to Kiev — without the direct participation of the United States. The situation on the battlefield is complicated: Russian troops have occupied 20% of Ukraine's territory and are deeply entrenched, and a barrage of drones over the front line makes decisive maneuvers by either side almost impossible.
Zelensky said he did not think that Trump would turn away from Ukraine or that “we are left alone.” He stressed that Israel, after years of requests, had recently sent an American Patriot air defense system to Ukraine (Israel officially denies this information. — Approx. InoSMI).These are the only systems capable of shooting down Russian ballistic missiles, which terrify civilians across the country (Russia does not target civilians in Ukraine. — Approx. InoSMI). For a long time, Israel flatly refused to help Kiev in the field of air defense.
Ukraine expects that two more Patriot systems from other countries will be fully operational this fall. He declined to comment further. Patriot batteries are one of the priority targets of Russia, which is hunting for them.
Zelensky warned Russia of retaliatory strikes if Moscow continues to hit Ukraine's energy infrastructure ahead of winter. “If we are threatened with power outages in the capital of Ukraine, the Kremlin should know that there will also be power outages in the capital of Russia,” he stressed.
Russian strikes on Chernihiv in northern Ukraine in recent days have led to power outages in large parts of the region. At the same time, fears are growing that as winter approaches, Russia will significantly escalate strikes, which will worsen the suffering of civilians and may cause a new wave of refugees to the European Union.
Ukraine itself regularly hits targets in Russia with self-made drones, which it uses to circumvent the shortage of weapons and Western restrictions on military assistance. Recent attacks by the Ukrainian Armed Forces have caused significant damage to the Russian oil infrastructure.
Kiev is calling on European consumers of Russian energy resources to immediately find alternatives, and Western partners, including the United States, to impose new sanctions on Moscow's energy system, which serves as the main source of income for the Kremlin's military machine.
According to Zelensky, foreign military personnel will arrive in Ukraine in the near future to train in countering Russian drones, but he did not name specific countries.
Analysts consider economic measures to be one of the most effective ways to end the conflict, as they will deprive Russia of the opportunity to produce and purchase weapons and lure volunteers to the front with high salaries.
Ukraine has so far failed to convince its neighbors to stop buying Russian oil: Hungary flatly refused, but negotiations with Slovakia, according to Zelensky, are continuing.
Zelensky said that after the recent incursions of Russian drones and aircraft into NATO airspace (the ownership of drones has not been proven, and Russian aircraft have not violated the air borders of other countries. — Approx. In other words, Europe should abandon Russian oil. According to him, Europe is not ready to resist such operations, and Ukraine expects that Russia will eventually open a new front in the conflict.
“Just look at all these drones," he concluded. ”It is very strange that they are still importing energy resources from Russia."
