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President Volodymyr Zelenskyy stated in an interview that that Ukraine’s army would have to withdraw “in small steps” if the US military assistance that has been promised due to disputes in the Congress.
“If there is no US support, it means that we have no air defence, no Patriot missiles, no jammers for electronic warfare, no 155-milimetre artillery rounds,” Zelenskiy told in an interview with Washington Post as reported by Reuters.
“It means we will go back, retreat, step by step, in small steps,” he added. “We are trying to find some way not to retreat.”
Shortages of munitions, Zelenskyy said, meant “you have to do with less. How? Of course, to go back. Make the front line shorter. If it breaks, the Russians could go to the big cities.”
The Republican-controlled U.S. House of Representatives has been asked by Democratic President Joe Biden to support the military and financial aid plan, but Speaker Mike Johnson has held up the matter for months, citing domestic priorities.
In an telephonic conversation on Monday, Zelenskyy told Johnson that approval of the package was vital. Russian forces captured the eastern town of Avdiivka last month and have made small gains since, but the front lines have changed little in months. The Ukraine President stated in an interview that while the country is producing its own weapons and air defence systems to make up for missile shortages, “it is not enough.”
More than two years into the war, Russia has intensified attacks on energy and other infrastructure in recent weeks. Ukrainian troops have been unable to advance, and Zelenskiy said Kyiv intended to pursue attacks on targets in Russia, including oil refineries.
He said Washington’s reaction to the wave of Ukrainian attacks was “not positive”, but Kyiv was using its own drones. “We used our drones. Nobody can say to us you can’t,” he told the newspaper. If there is no air defence to protect our energy system and Russians attack it, my question is: Why can’t we answer them?” he said. “Their society has to learn to live without petrol, without diesel, without electricity. When Russia will stop these steps, we will stop.”
(With inputs from Reuters)
(Reporting by Ron Popeski; Editing by Bill Berkrot and David Gregorio)
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Published: 30 Mar 2024, 06:33 AM IST
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