• Kuleba who was in Warsaw, Poland said Russia had intensified their strike over the last few days.
• He said the strikes target energy facilities, critical infrastructure and civilians, and has resulted in significant casualties and damage, as well as power outages in entire cities in Ukraine.
Ukraine Minister of Foreign Affairs Dmytro Kuleba has said Ukraine urgently requires more air defence and interceptors particularly Patriot and other systems capable of intercepting ballistic missiles. https://rb.gy/15nvtr
Image: SCREENGRAB
Ukraine Minister of Foreign Affairs Dmytro Kuleba has said Ukraine urgently requires more air defence and interceptors particularly Patriot and other systems capable of intercepting ballistic missiles.
Speaking on Wednesday during a weekly press briefing, Kuleba who was in Warsaw, Poland alleged Russia had intensified their strike over the last few days.
He said the strikes target energy facilities, critical infrastructure and civilians, and have resulted in significant casualties and damage, as well as power outages in entire cities in Ukraine.
He noted that the attacks have largely been carried out by the use of ballistic missiles.
"Russia escalated its air terror against Ukraine. It launched 190 missiles of various types, 140 Shahed drones and 700 guided aerial bombs against Ukraine in just one week, from March 18 to March 24, 2024.
"As we speak, just some minutes ago, there was another ballistic missile attack on the city of Mykolaiv and the time gap between the air raid siren and the effectual strike was only a couple of minutes so it pauses hazard to human life and unfortunately our cities face this reality daily," Kuleba said.
The Foreign Affairs Minister insisted that having modern and strong air defence systems, especially the Patriot Missile Long-Range Air-Defence System will help Ukraine overcome many hurdles, including allowing their forces to not only avoid losing ground but also repel the Russian soldiers.
"A strong Ukrainian air defence will cover our troops and allow them to turn the tide of the war in Ukraine’s favour. Russia’s main battlefield advantage right now is the extensive use of guided aerial bombs."
Kuleba said it will also help Ukraine save thousands of human lives which is a noble goal in itself. He said the Patriot and other such systems are defensive by definition and are designed to protect lives instead of taking them.
He stated that it will also save a significant amount of resources from Ukraine’s partners because there will be less destruction of critical infrastructure.
He said that if their cities are protected by modern air defense systems, thousands of Ukrainians will return from abroad, and this will strengthen the country's economy and reduce its reliance on foreign financial aid.
"There are patriot systems available around the world, partners can provide them if there is enough political will and this must occur now.
"Ukraine is currently the only country in the world that is subjected to ballistic missile attacks almost every day. Patriots must be stationed in Ukraine now to protect human life rather than remaining in areas where the threat to human life is zero," Minister Kuleba said.
In last week's briefing, Kuleba called on allies to extend military support to Ukraine.
He said that despite increasing their production of defence infrastructure to three times what it was at the beginning of the war, Ukraine still needs more and quicker military aid.
He said the situation at the frontline, which extends to over 200 kilometres remained tense, because of Russia's brutal war tactics.
Kuleba said it is the reason they need the arms to defend their sovereignty.
He said the Russian invasion is only hellbent on denying Ukraine's right to exist as a sovereign nation and that they are not the only country whose right to exist at least within current borders Russia denies.
"Ukrainians want to live in our own country and make our own decisions. This is why today, we have no other choice than to defend our country with arms."