Zelenskyy to meet with NATO, European leaders in push to bolster defenses

 

Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy looks on during a joint press conference with Poland's prime minister in Lviv, on Dec. 17, 2024.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy is set to meet Wednesday with NATO chief Mark Rutte and European leaders in Brussels as Ukraine seeks to bolster its defenses against Russian forces.

Zelenskyy on Tuesday cited an urgent need to boost military aid to Ukraine, especially air defense systems.

“We must do everything possible to destroy Russia’s ability to wage war from as far away as possible,” Zelenskyy said. “For this, we need more drones, more modern artillery, and long-range missiles.”

Wednesday’s talks come a month before U.S. President Donald Trump takes office, bringing uncertainty about the level of continued U.S. support for Ukraine from the new administration.

Among those expected to meet with Zelenskyy in Brussels were German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk, Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, Denmark\’s Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen, European Council President António Costa and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen.

Ahead of the talks, Russia launched another round of overnight aerial attacks.

Ihor Taburets, governor of Ukraine’s Cherkasy region, said Wednesday on Telegram that Ukrainian air defenses shot down 13 drones. He said there was no damage to infrastructure in the area.

Khmelnytskyi Governor Serhii Tiurin said Wednesday that Ukrainian forces shot down two drones.

Russia’s Defense Ministry said Wednesday it destroyed two Ukrainian aerial drones over the Belgorod region, along with a drone over Bryansk and another over Kursk.

Moscow attack

Russia said Wednesday it detained a suspect in the killing of Lt. Gen. Igor Kirillov, the chief of the military’s nuclear, biological and chemical protection forces.

Authorities described the suspect as a citizen of Uzbekistan who was recruited by Ukrainian intelligence services to carry out the Tuesday attack in Moscow.

An official with Ukraine’s Security Service, or SBU, said Tuesday the agency was behind the attack and called Kirillov a “war criminal and an entirely legitimate target.”

Several countries, including Britain and Canada, had sanctioned Kirillov, 54, for his actions in Moscow’s nearly three-year war in Ukraine

Some information for this story came from The Associated Press, Agence France-Presse and Reuters.

By：VOA