President Vladimir Zelensky gave a detailed interview about the situation at the front, help from Western partners and threats to the state from Belarus
How many Patriot air defense systems does Ukraine need to completely cover the sky, how is Kharkov’s defense equipped in the sky and on the ground, and what is the pace of construction of fortifications at the front?
Read the answers to these questions on ICTV Facts based on the results of the interview of the President of Ukraine Vladimir Zelensky, which he gave to the hosts of the United News telethon Orest Drimalovsky, who is a military man and a journalist for the Vikna-noviny program, as well as Lyudmila Dobrovolskaya, a journalist from the We — Ukraine.
Now watching
- Delaying the mobilization bill
- Situation at the front: the enemy is not advancing
- Defense of Kharkov on the ground
- Threat from Belarus?
- How many F-16 fighters will Ukraine receive by the end of the year
- How many Patriot air defense systems does Ukraine need to cover the sky
- Fortifications at the front: what is the situation
- Credit funds from the USA: will Ukraine agree
Delaying the mobilization bill
In an interview, Zelensky criticized the pace of adoption of the bill on mobilization in the Verkhovna Rada and said that in the coming days, the document will probably still be approved by people's deputies.
According to him, Russia is taking advantage of delaying the adoption of the mobilization bill in its disinformation campaign against Ukrainian society and Western partner countries.
— They (Russians, — Ed.) raised the issue of mobilization, they understood the sensitivity of this issue. The issue of mobilization was raised in Ukrainian society and in the West, so it worked. This issue began to divide society into those who are for and also those who are against. For military and civilians. This is a big mistake. Deputies must calm down and not wait for applause for their populism, and therefore the law cannot be purged, we must look at it realistically. A working law that will work, — says the head of state.
Credit funds from the USA: will Ukraine agree
When asked whether Ukraine will agree to US assistance in the form of loans, the president says that official Kiev is now considering several options.
— You know, there was a senator recently, and he asked: “Will you agree to loan money?”. I asked: “What are the options?”. “Well, — he says, — Well, if, for example, they tell you that the money is on credit or you won’t receive (help, — Ed.)”. I say: “Why such elections when there is no choice?”, — Zelensky recounted a conversation with probably Republican Senator Lindsey Graham, who visited Ukraine on March 18.
The President claims that Ukraine is ready to agree “to any option”.
— I'll tell you more — if today they offered Ukraine a package on credit today or for free in a year, then we would say — only today. There is no choice here. Our choice is one: survive and win. We are trying to do this in different ways. This is regarding credit. Therefore, it doesn’t matter, but the important thing is that the faster, the better, — added the president.
Situation at the front: the enemy is not advancing
According to the head of state, today the invaders were stopped by the Ukrainian Defense Forces. And although the situation at the front is difficult, it remains stable.
— The enemy is not advancing, where he takes steps forward, our military repels him, puts pressure on him and he retreats back, and on the contrary, our guys take some steps forward. All these actions, 90% are in the east of Ukraine, these are different directions, not only Avdeevka, Liman, and Kharkov direction, Kupyansk, etc., — Zelensky reported.
Defense of Kharkov on the ground
The President said that today the Kremlin does not hide that Kharkov is a desirable goal for the Russian Federation. But Moscow should know that Kharkov is protected today, and Ukrainian troops have powerful defense lines in this direction, so if the enemy attempts to advance — the Russians will receive resistance.
— Kharkov is protected today. As for defensive lines, as for our troops, today Kharkov is not in danger. The fact that this is a desired goal… Well, the Russians are not hiding — the entire east, and not only the east, but also the south of our state, and cities such as Kharkov, Kramatorsk — this is their desired goal. But today we defend the Kharkov region with absolute confidence, — Zelensky said.
Threat from Belarus?
Both the Russian occupiers in Belarus and the Belarusian military and political leaders should know that Ukraine is building serious fortification lines on the border with Belarus, so the enemy will receive powerful resistance.
— As for the Belarusian direction: the fact that we are building boundaries is no secret. And Russians should also know, and Belarusians too, or Russians on the territory of Belarus should also know — yes, there are boundaries here, — emphasized the leader.
He added that from a strategic point of view, there are no threats from Belarus yet: “from Belarus we do not yet see any plans, threats and capabilities for today”.
How many F-16 fighters will Ukraine receive by the end of the year
Ukraine, in order to counteract guided aerial bombs (CAB) of the Russian Federation, needs combined protection in the form of F-16 fighters and air defense systems.
At the same time, by the end of 2024, Ukraine will be able to receive only 10% of the F-16 fighters from the total number of promised aircraft. This should strengthen the fight against Russian KABs.
— What is 10% (F-16, — Ed.) from that volume? From the composition of our modern air fleet, which is enough to independently defeat the number of Russian aircraft that operate in Ukraine. I say, if you fight in the sky, then fight and win, and not just “we have the F-16”. We need the appropriate quantity. And we understand that there will be 10% of this this year. That's why I said combined, there aren't enough planes now — and airplanes and air defense. So you can, — added the president.
How many Patriot air defense systems does Ukraine need to cover the sky
The head of state also told how many Patriot air defense systems or similar air defense systems are needed to completely cover the sky over Ukraine from Russian attacks.
— I won't tell you how many Patriot systems we have. I can say that in order to close Ukraine completely, for the future, it is advisable for Ukraine to have 25 Patriot systems with 6-8 batteries in each, — Zelensky said.
Fortifications at the front: what is the situation
Ukraine is building three defense lines 2 thousand km long in different directions — in Avdeevsky, in Zaporozhye and in the north of the country. They will all be ready at about the same time.
— The quality approach to all lines of defense, regardless of direction, is the same, but standard. And according to the deadlines — they are approximately the same, but the closer to hot areas, the faster everything is built, that’s the requirement. But everything will be handed over in about the same time, — says the head of state.
He noted that everything would be ready in a few months — such obligations on all three lines.
— In some areas, in particular hot ones, 92%-98% of the work has already been completed, — Zelensky said.
At the same time, Zelensky adds that it cannot be said that there are really enough fortifications at the front.
