President Volodymyr Zelensky of Ukraine called for increased military aid from Germany and the United States, who recently pledged to provide advanced Abrams tanks.
The urgency for additional weapons is due to NATO’s warning of a potential Russian military attack on Ukraine with 200,000 newly mobilized soldiers.
Zelensky specifically requested the 300-kilometer-range ATACMS missile developed by the U.S., but it has yet to be supplied.
His plea followed reports of Putin’s plan to escalate the invasion of Ukraine with an additional 200,000 troops.
Jens Stoltenberg, the Secretary-General of NATO, expressed his disappointment with Putin’s actions, stating that there is “no sign” that he is “preparing for peace.”
Putin warned of Russia’s preparation for “more war.”
This follows reports suggesting Putin may be gearing up for a major “blitzkrieg-style” offensive aimed at winning the war by capturing Kyiv.
Ukraine fears the attack may occur on February 24th, the first anniversary of Russia’s invasion.
According to Stoltenberg, there are no indications that President Putin and the Moscow government are making preparations for peace.
Instead, he states that the opposite is happening.
He claims that Moscow is preparing for war by mobilizing over 200,000 soldiers and potentially more, acquiring new weapons, increasing their own production of ammunition, and obtaining weapons from other authoritarian states such as Iran and North Korea.
Stoltenberg stated that the only way to get Putin back to the negotiating table instead of resorting to war is by continuing to provide military support to Ukraine.
He emphasized that there has been no indication of Putin changing his objective of controlling Ukraine and hence, the situation requires preparation for the long term.
Stoltenberg also highlighted that the outcome of negotiations is closely tied to the situation on the battlefield.
To ensure the sovereignty and independence of Ukraine, he stressed the importance of providing military support now, as it will pave the way for a peaceful agreement in the future.
Despite receiving tanks from the UK, Germany, and the U.S., Ukraine has expressed concerns that Putin may launch a renewed attack in 2023.
Oleksiy Danilov, the Secretary of Ukraine’s National Security and Defence Council, warns that Russia is “preparing for maximum activation” and that they plan to achieve their goals by February 24th, 2023.
Danilov says that there is no secret that Russia is gearing up for a new wave of attacks.
In light of these developments, Ukraine continues to request weapons.
