“Western hesitation emboldens Putin”: Volodymyr Zelensky selects staunch Baltic allies for his first trip abroad in 2024 to issue an increasingly urgent call to arms The country is also heating up in Italy. From Vilnius, the first stop on a surprise trip, the Ukrainian president stressed that his country was “cruelly” lacking in anti-aircraft systems that were urgently needed. Because “Putin will not end the war until we all end it together,” warned Zelensky. “He wants to completely occupy us” and doesn’t want to stop even after that: “Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia and Moldova could be next.” In the last few days, Russia “hit Ukraine with a total of 500 bombs: we destroyed 70% of them “, he denounced and reiterated that “air defense systems are the first thing we are missing”.
The air raid figures make it clear that in the second winter of the war there is an escalation of attacks on both sides of the front: while Ukraine has suffered hundreds of bomb attacks in recent weeks, the Kiev forces responded with attacks on the Russian border Regions, particularly that of Belgorod, which has been forced to order the evacuation of civilians, including 93 children so far. Given these premises and the fact that the end of the war remains a mirage – “there is still nothing of a peace process,” Kremlin spokesman Peskov clarified – Zelensky called on the allies to maintain the flow of military support from the same Vilnius, where last July during a NATO summit he received promises of unwavering support for Kiev from Western leaders, including US President Joe Biden.
Lithuania – Kiev's largest donor in terms of GDP (1.4%) – is doing its part, promising help “until victory” with a €200 million package. Estonia and Latvia have also pledged aid of 1.3% to 1.1% of GDP each, reflecting a war too close to their borders for their comfort. But to reassure Zelenskyy's government, other figures are needed: the billions in US aid, over which the American Congress is still divided, and the 50 billion euro EU package, which is blocked by the veto of Hungary under Viktor Orban became. These are vital funds for Ukraine, whose promised aid fell by almost 90% between August and October 2023 compared to the same period in 2022, reaching the lowest level since the start of the conflict, according to the Kiel Institute. And “the future prospects are unclear,” emphasizes the think tank. Zelensky knows this, for whom the next few weeks will be crucial in bringing home the resources and weapons necessary to give new oxygen to the troops fighting on the front lines against the invasion.
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