(Bloomberg) -- An additional 10 or 12 US-made Patriot air defense systems could help Ukraine secure its skies and change the balance of power in Russia’s war on the country, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy told reporters in Kyiv.
Speaking at a joint briefing with Spanish parliamentarian Iratxe García Pérez on Tuesday, Zelenskiy said that an air defense system could have prevented attacks like the one on the central city of Zaporizhzhia which killed at least three people and damaged a hospital earlier that day.
“When our sky is completely protected, no glide bombs, no missiles would hit infrastructure or energy objects,” Zelenskiy said. “One system costs 1.5 billion — take this money from Russian assets.”
Zelenskiy reiterated that he “can’t understand” why such the decision hasn’t been made yet. “People will return to normal life, the economy will work. This is what we need tactically,” he said.
Ukraine has already received American and European-made air protection systems from partners, but those aren’t enough to defend key cities, and especially those close to the frontline. Regions including north-eastern Kharkiv, central Zaporizhzhia and southern Kherson are attacked with bombs and missiles on an almost daily basis.
In the past week alone, Zelenskiy said that Russia has launched nearly 500 guided aerial bombs, more 400 attack drones, and almost 20 types of missiles against Ukraine. He added that this ongoing war and the terror it has wrought can no longer be seen as Ukraine’s problem alone.
“The matter depends entirely on political decisions: decisions by the U.S. administration, European leaders, and other partners around the world,” Zelenskiy said in a post on X that highlighted rescue efforts in Zaporizhzhia.
©2024 Bloomberg L.P.