After declaring that World War III had broken out, the Ukrainian Ambassador to the UK, former Commander-in-Chief of the Ukrainian Armed Forces, Valery Zaluzhny, believes that Europe is not ready for a long war with Russia.
On November 21, Mr. Valery Zaluzhny, Ambassador of Ukraine to the UK and former Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, believed that with the “direct involvement of Russia’s allies” in the war in Ukraine, it can be considered that World War III has begun.
“I believe that in 2024, we can absolutely consider World War III to have broken out. The reason is that in 2024, Ukraine will no longer only face Russia, but also soldiers from North Korea. Let’s be realistic,” he said.
Most military officers agree that all these factors indicate that a world war has begun and the world should prepare for it, Mr. Zaluzhny stressed.
A few days later, on November 24, in an interview with
Ukrainska Pravda , Mr. Zaluzhny believed that European countries were not ready for a long-term war with Russia.
“If we talk about short-term military actions , then most likely the European countries are ready. But the essence of the question is whether they are ready for a war of attrition. Let’s count. Look, in October, I think Ukraine was hit by 1,643 Russian UAVs and about 200 missiles on energy facilities. And the trend will only increase. This month alone, if we count the number of UAVs and missiles fired at civilian facilities, it has reached 3,000. And this month is not over yet,” he said.
“So the number of air targets is increasing, and the number of combat vehicles is limited and too expensive. Even according to this indicator, I believe that neither Britain nor European countries will be ready (for possible military actions against Russia). Despite the sufficient number of F-16 aircraft, which are capable of air defense, within 2-3 months the air defense system can be completely depleted. It is difficult to say whether they are studying alternative measures and means to learn how to counter air targets. Most likely not,” he stressed.
The former Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine also noted that “in October and September, the front line was hit by about 4,500 guided bombs.” He emphasized that the KAB bomb weighs 500 kg, for comparison – the warhead weight of the Iskander missile is 480 kg.
“Does a European country or even the UK today have at least 5,000 missiles for the Patriot system to shoot down guided bombs? I somewhat doubt it. Because they are very expensive and, therefore, there cannot be many, because their production is problematic. Therefore, in terms of this military component, we can say that they are clearly not ready,” the Ukrainian Ambassador to the UK believes.
In addition to military actions, the Russians also use information and psychological operations in their “destructive” strategy, Mr. Zaluzhny added.
“Europe is in a warm environment and does not want to leave it right now. Therefore, in my personal opinion, if they are ready for such a war in conditions of “destruction”, then perhaps, with very big limitations,” he said.
