“The longer it goes on, the more people suffer,” Zelensky said. (File)
Kiev, Ukraine:
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky warned on Friday that “slower” arms deliveries from Western countries posed a threat to his counter-offensive, calling for more powerful weapons with longer range to push back Russian forces.
Ukraine launched its counter-offensive in June after stockpiling Western weapons, but has made limited gains as its forces encounter heavily fortified Russian defense lines.
“All processes are becoming more complicated and slower – from sanctions to the supply of weapons,” Zelenskiy said in comments on the presidential website.
“The longer it goes on, the more people suffer,” he warned.
– Elections –
His comments came as Moscow held local elections in Russian-occupied Ukrainian territory, which Kiev and international groups condemned as a sham.
“The Russian pseudo-elections in the temporarily occupied territories are worthless,” the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry said in a statement, accusing Moscow of “gross violation” of its sovereignty.
Russia said voting was underway in the four Ukrainian regions of Donetsk, Luhansk, Zaporizhia and Kherson – which Moscow does not fully control – as well as in Crimea.
Zelensky also said Russia hoped the upcoming US presidential election would reduce Washington’s support for Kiev, stressing that it was “important that the American people support democracy, support Ukraine and support our struggle.”
He acknowledged that while Ukraine had bipartisan support, there were “voices in the Republican Party that say support for Ukraine should be reduced.”
At a meeting in Kiev, Zelensky also stated his willingness to hold elections in Ukraine despite the possibility of continued fighting, and said his government was ready to adapt to wartime restrictions to ensure legitimate polls are held.
“I am ready for the elections. I mean, we’re ready if it’s needed,” he said.
He acknowledged potential problems, including for refugees and people in Russian-occupied areas, and the need for soldiers at the front to have their say.
“For us, the most important thing is not that elections are held, but that they are recognized,” he said.
– ‘War crime’ –
Russia continued to bombard central and eastern Ukraine with airstrikes on Friday, with Ukrainian officials posting images of the destruction on social media.
“A Russian air bomb killed three civilians in Odradokamyanka – two women and a man. Four local residents were injured,” said Interior Minister Igor Klymenko, calling the attack a “war crime.”
Odradokamyanka is located about 60 kilometers upstream from the city of Kherson, on the west bank of the Dnipro River, which was recaptured by Ukrainian forces last November.
A separate Russian attack on Friday targeted Zelensky’s hometown of Kryvyi Rig, hitting a police building in the city center and killing a police officer, Klymenko said.
Photos from the scene showed smoke spewing from the ruins of the building as rescuers carried an injured person to an ambulance.
“Rescuers from the state emergency service have pulled three more from under the rubble. They are in serious condition,” Klymenko said.
Russia also hit the city of Sumy in northeastern Ukraine, officials said, while one man was injured in a rocket attack on Zaporizhia in the southeast.
– ‘The next step’ –
Zelensky and Ukrainian officials have repeatedly hit back at criticism that Ukraine’s counteroffensive in the south and east has been too slow.
“If some partners say: what about the counter-offensive, when will the next step be? My answer is that our steps today are probably faster than new sanctions packages,” Zelensky said on Friday.
“There is a specific impact from a specific weapon. The more powerful it is and the greater its reach, the faster the counter-offensive,” he said.
Zelensky’s request for new arms deliveries came a day after top US diplomat Antony Blinken wrapped up his surprise two-day visit to Ukraine, during which he announced $1 billion in new war aid.
Also on Friday, Zelensky accused Russian President Vladimir Putin of being behind the death of Wagner chief Yevgeny Prigozhin in a plane crash last month.
“He killed Prigozhin, at least we all have this information and no other,” he said.
Prigozhin, the head of the Wagner mercenary group, died along with nine other people when a plane flying from Moscow to St. Petersburg crashed on August 23.
Exactly two months earlier, Prigozhin had openly challenged the Russian military high command by leading his fighters in a short-lived mutiny that threatened to turn into a civil conflict.
The Kremlin has rejected suggestions that it orchestrated the crash in revenge for Wagner’s march on Moscow in June.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published through a syndicated feed.)
