By Mike Collett-White and Dan Peleschuk
KYIV (Reuters) – Western allies are taking too long to make decisions on military support for Ukraine, President Volodymyr Zelenskiy told Reuters in an exclusive interview in Kyiv on Monday.
He described the delivery of military aid, in particular of air defences like the Patriot systems which Ukraine relies on heavily in its war with Russia, as “one big step forward, but before that, two steps back.”
“Every decision to which we, then later everyone together, comes to is late by around one year,” he said, wearing his trademark khaki T-shirt and trousers and raising his voice at times.
His tough remarks come at a perilous time for his forces, which are outnumbered and outgunned by Moscow’s army and losing territory in the northeast and east of the country.
Clearly frustrated at what he sees as delays and dithering by partners in the West, Zelenskiy suggested ways in which allies could help more directly, including by shooting down Russian missiles over Ukrainian territory in certain circumstances.
According to the 46-year-old, the battlefield situation in the northeast of the country is now under control, after Moscow’s forces crossed the border and launched incursions towards the city of Kharkiv.