On his only trip abroad since the Russian invasion, the Ukrainian leader presented the president of the US House of Representatives with a flag of his country signed by military personnel stationed in Bakhmut. In addition to this gift to Nancy Pelosi, Volodymyr Zelensky gave President Joe Biden a Medal of Merit for a captain of a unit operating the US-made HIMARS system. At the start of his second journey, which took him to England, the message of the offer, in this case to the Speaker of the House of Commons, was even clearer: an aviator’s helmet. And if there was any doubt, it says, “We have liberty. Give us wings to protect it.”
He has heard from the British Prime Minister that “nothing is out of the question”, although military analysts say the Ukrainian knocked on the wrong door. From English soil he went to Paris, where he dined with the leaders of France and Germany, hours before a European Council in Brussels, which lasts until tomorrow.
The President of the European Council has convened an extraordinary summit whose agenda will be dominated by war. Charles Michel wants to discuss Zelensky’s peace initiative with the leaders of the 27, the possibility of using frozen Russian assets in favor of Ukraine, and Moscow’s responsibility for the conflict, in addition to various aspects of support for Kiev. Six days after being in the Ukrainian capital for the Ukraine-EU summit, the Belgian leader was expected to open the door of the Europa building to Zelensky.
The Ukrainian head of state reportedly left Dorset, where he met Ukrainian soldiers receiving training, with mixed feelings. He had started the day by thanking the British for their support. Addressing MPs and Lords on the steps of Westminster, he did not forget Boris Johnson’s role in being at the forefront of creating an international alliance “when the world did not yet know how to react”.
“We will always defeat evil. We know that truth will win and Russia will lose. Victory will change the world, a change the world has long needed.” Volodymyr Zelensky
The speech, however, aimed to call for more military support, particularly fighter jets – and nothing tangible in that regard. After recalling his first official visit to London in 2020, Zelensky praised the “delicious English tea” he had been offered, but this time it was the “powerful English planes” for which he would be most grateful. “I ask you and the world for fighter jets for Ukraine, wings for freedom,” he said.
The head of the British government, Rishi Sunak, responded by reminding that British Challenger 2 tanks will be grounded in March. In addition, he offered training to Ukrainian pilots – starting in the spring, according to his spokesman – and instructed Defense Secretary Ben Wallace to look at which aircraft could be sent to Ukraine in a “perspective of a long-term solution”. This hypothesis prompted the Russian embassy in London to respond almost immediately, declaring that “Russia will find an answer to hostile measures from the British side”.
“It is not NATO that is at war with Russia. It is Russia that is invading Ukraine. Putin will not achieve his goals, either on the battlefield or through an imposed peace.” Olaf Scholtz
According to British military experts, for various reasons, neither the Typhoon nor the F-35 – the models in service with the British Air Force – are the answer, but the American F-16, the Swedish Gripen or the French Mirage.
The possibility of this last aircraft being put into the service of Ukraine has been the subject of discussion in Paris and will not have been left out of the conversation between the Ukrainian leader and Emmanuel Macron at the dinner that took place at the Élysée Palace. Chancellor Olaf Scholz, who this morning assured the Bundestag that “Ukraine’s future lies in the EU”, also said that “Putin will not achieve his goals”.
Source: DN
