Zelensky said on Sunday that his country was preparing a counteroffensive aimed at liberating areas occupied by Russia,
UPDATE – Sunday, 5/14/23 11:03pm
file photo
Berlin: Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said on Sunday that his country was preparing a counteroffensive aimed at liberating areas occupied by Russia, not attacking Russian territory.
Speaking at a news conference in Berlin with German Chancellor Olaf Schulz, Zelensky said Ukraine’s goal was to liberate territories within its internationally recognized borders.
There has been speculation that Ukraine may try to seize territory in mainland Russia and use it as leverage in possible peace talks to end a war Moscow started in February 2022.
Pressed by reporters, Zelensky said: “We do not attack Russian territory, we liberate our own legal territory.” According to an official translator, he said: “We have neither the time nor the strength (to attack Russia). “And we don’t have spare weapons that we can use to do this.” Zelensky said: “We are preparing to fight back against illegal occupation in accordance with the internationally recognized legal borders stipulated in the Constitution.”
Ukraine’s president is visiting allies to find more weapons to help his country fend off a Russian invasion and to find funds to rebuild what was destroyed by more than a year of devastating conflict.
A Luftwaffe jet flew Zelensky from Rome to the German capital, where he met Pope Francis and Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni on Saturday.
His first visit to Berlin since the start of the war came a day after the German government announced a new military aid package to Ukraine worth more than 2.7 billion euros ($3 billion), including tanks, air defense systems and ammunition.
Zelensky thanked Schulz for his political, financial and military support for Germany, saying the country is now second only to the United States in aid to Ukraine, and joked that he was working to make it the largest donor.
Schulz made it clear that Kiev can expect a steady stream of German aid.
“We will support you as long as necessary,” he said, adding that it was up to Russia to withdraw its troops to end the war.
After initially hesitating to supply Ukraine with lethal weapons, Germany has become one of Ukraine’s largest suppliers of weapons, including Leopard 1 and 2 main battle tanks, and the advanced IRIS-T SLM air defense system.
Modern Western hardware is considered crucial if Ukraine is to successfully mount a counteroffensive against Russian forces.
Zelensky first met the German head of state, President Frank-Walter Steinmeier, who was snubbed by Kiev last year, apparently because of his previous close ties to Russia, which cooled diplomatic relations between Ukraine and Germany.
Both Steinmeier and Prime Minister Olaf Schulz have visited Ukraine since then, assuring Zelensky of their support for Ukraine’s fight against Russian aggression. Announcing the new weapons programme, German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius said Berlin would help Ukraine “in a time of need”. After meeting Scholz and other senior officials at the Chancellery, the two leaders are expected to fly to the western city of Aachen to accept the International Charlemagne Award for Zelensky, awarded to him and the Ukrainian people.
Organizers said the award recognized their resistance to Russian aggression “not only in defense of their country’s sovereignty and the lives of their citizens, but also in defense of Europe and European values.” Despite strong support for Ukraine expressed by German leaders, German voters There is disagreement over whether the country should provide more weapons, especially advanced fighter jets of the kind Kiev is demanding from its allies.
