Ukraine is under heavy pressure. The country appears to be losing its defensive battle against Russia. New weapons systems from the West are essential.
Kiev - Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba wants the West's additional, unused Patriot air defense batteries. And he no longer asks politely. “Nice and calm diplomacy didn’t work,” Kuleba, Kyiv’s top diplomat, said this week in an interview with The
Washington Post
.
The US-developed Patriot air defense system, which costs more than a billion dollars per battery, has been at the top of Ukraine's wish list since Russia's war in Ukraine began more than two years ago. Kiev received its first Patriot batteries last summer, but the three it now has are not enough to defend the entire country against increasing Russian air attack.
Ukraine hopes for Patriot systems from the West
In a wartime government that tasks each of its top officials with wooing Western allies for more weapons, President Volodymyr Zelensky has given his foreign minister a special task: convincing countries that have free patriots to give them up.
Kuleba has repeatedly stressed that he and Ukraine are grateful for the security assistance already provided by many countries, but he has also begun to publicly express frustration about the limits of their continued support.
Western aid has declined in recent months - particularly from the United States, Ukraine's biggest donor, where Republicans in Congress have been blocking a package worth around $60 billion proposed by President Biden for months.
The challenges facing Kuleba in his current campaign are emblematic of Ukraine's dilemma in this future war: the country's survival still depends on arms supplies from its partners, but few of those partners seem to feel the urgency to understand. Kuleba said he hoped his new style of tougher diplomacy would make a breakthrough.
“Yes, people may hate me, and I may ruin relationships,” Kuleba said. “The other part of me says that diplomacy is only about private relationships. But then I told that part to shut up, and the part of me that wanted to speak up started speaking up. We've tried everything, but nothing seems to work."
Kuleba said his team has identified more than 100 available Patriots - some neighboring countries have more than one battery to guard a port or airfield, he said. Zelensky said Ukraine needs 26 Patriots to establish a full air raid shield over Ukraine, but Kuleba is initially focused on obtaining seven as quickly as possible.
This would cover the largest Ukrainian cities and leave at least one free to be closer to the battlefield where the Russian Air Force has attacked Ukrainian troops on the ground with guided bombs. Kuleba said he found it difficult to "understand the resistance of some countries to moving at least one of their systems to Ukraine."
During a meeting in Brussels to mark NATO's 75th anniversary, Kuleba told those present in no uncertain terms: "I'm sorry to spoil the birthday celebration, but who can believe that the most powerful military alliance in the world is unable to defeat seven patriotic Find batteries to provide to the only country in the world that fights ballistic attacks every day?
Kuleba joked that the “happiest” ministers at the meeting were those who could say they had no Patriot batteries in their country. “But those who have them feel uncomfortable,” he said.
Kuleba said he was confident Ukraine would eventually receive more Patriot systems, but that delays cost Ukrainian lives.
Russia increases attacks on Ukraine's infrastructure
In recent weeks, Russia has stepped up attacks on critical Ukrainian infrastructure and caused power outages in some cities, including Kharkiv. Kiev is focusing its demands for more air defense systems on the Patriot because it is the only weapon capable of intercepting and destroying Russian hypersonic ballistic missiles like the Kinzhal.
Although Ukraine maintains at least one Patriot battery near the capital Kiev, it has moved at least one of the other two batteries closer to the front lines to combat the increased use of Russian guided aerial bombs.
The Patriots themselves are a priority target for Russia, and at least one of the batteries in Ukraine was damaged. It has now been repaired.
Most Ukrainian air defense systems still come from the Soviet Union, such as: B. the S-300 system, and the ammunition for it is produced mainly in Russia or in countries friendly to Moscow. These Soviet-era systems will eventually become obsolete as Ukraine runs out of ammunition, further deteriorating the country's security situation.
With the US's $60 billion package stalled, Kuleba said Kiev has identified four other countries in Europe and Asia that have patriots who could be immediately transferred to Ukraine. Still, he hasn't stopped lobbying the Americans to send some of them.
Kuleba reiterated the caveat that he was grateful for the weapons already supplied by Washington, saying: “Seriously believe that the entire US Army does not have a single spare battery of Patriots that is not in combat use and not at the disposal of Ukraine can be provided? I don't."
Kuleba is changing his diplomacy on the subject of Patriot systems
In any case, the United States will be called upon to play a role. The ammunition - albeit in relatively small quantities - is manufactured there. And before a country releases a battery, it will ask Washington for permission. Most countries want Washington to commit to replacing any patriot they give to Ukraine.
Kuleba has even advocated loaning Patriots to Ukraine with a promise to return the batteries as soon as possible. And he admitted he is deeply frustrated.
“I feel like I'm hitting my own head against the wall even though I'm a diplomat, and that means I have to dismantle the wall brick by brick,” Kuleba said. “But since this kind of diplomacy doesn't work, I feel like I'm hitting the wall. I just don't understand why it doesn't work."
Kuleba said he changed his tactics two weeks ago when people in Kiev were startled by the sound of explosions less than a minute after an air raid siren sounded, signaling a possible attack.
There was usually more time to seek shelter. This time Russia used ballistic missiles. They were quickly intercepted - almost certainly with missiles from a Patriot. However, Kuleba reacted differently: If something like this could happen in Kiev, the most protected city in Ukraine, how great must the terror be for everyone who lives outside the capital?
“The problem is that people have just gotten used to the war being out there somewhere,” Kuleba said. “The feeling that extraordinary decisions have to be made on a regular basis to end this war with a victory for Ukraine has disappeared.”
We are currently testing machine translations. This article was automatically translated from English into German.
This article was first published in English on April 10, 2024 at the “Washingtonpost.com” - as part of a cooperation, it is now also available in translation to readers of the IPPEN.MEDIA portals.