Air defence systems are a high priority for Ukraine, according to President Zelensky, who also noted that the US and Germany have not yet delivered the promised complexes.
In a press conference conducted today in Kiev, the Ukrainian capital, President Volodymyr Zelensky said that the nation highly values the function of air defence systems and considers it a top priority in efforts to defend cities and towns from Russian air attacks.
Israel has not responded favourably to Ukraine’s request for air defence systems, according to Zelensky, and the US and Germany have not yet sent the Ukrainian military the systems they had pledged to send.
Officials from the US, Germany, and Israel have not responded to the claim.
On August 23, the German government declared that it will send three IRIS-T SLM medium-range air defence systems and more than $500 million in military assistance to Ukraine. Each complex has a command vehicle, a radar station, and three launchers with a combined capacity of up to 24 combat-ready rounds and a 40 km maximum range.
The Pentagon declared on July 1 that the US would give Ukraine two Norwegian Advanced Air Defense Systems (NASAMS) systems.
NASAMS was created by Kongsberg Defense & Aerospace of Norway and Raytheon of the US, began use in the militaries of 9 countries in 1998, and is still in use today. All NATO fighter missile versions can be fired from this system, which uses AIM-120 AMRAAM air-to-air missiles with a range of around 25–30 km and good accuracy.
The operation in the southern province of Kherson was halted by Russia, but Ukraine recently began a counteroffensive in the northeastern province of Kharkov and regained control of several territory. The counteroffensive campaign in the northeast, according to the US-based Institute for the Study of War, had “changed the tide in Ukraine’s favour, but the hostilities had not yet concluded.”
Western diplomats voiced concern over the news as Ukrainian officials claimed to have reclaimed more than 6,000 square kilometres of territory since the beginning of September.
John Kirby, a spokesman for the US National Security Council, stated on September 13 that although Russia faced numerous difficulties in Ukraine, its military was still “extremely large and formidable.”
“Russia still possesses a military that is powerful enough to do significant harm. We can observe the results in Ukraine. The Russian military is enormously strong. President Vladimir Putin still has a sizable military reserve, potentially even outside of Ukraine “he said.
On September 12, the Kremlin ruled off the chance of peace talks by announcing that the operation would go on until the objective was reached. Then the Russian army initiated an all-out assault on Ukrainian forces that resulted in heavy fatalities and damage to the adversary.
