Ukraine urges allies to assist in intercepting missiles, but there is alternative - MFA
Photo: Dmytro Kuleba, Minister of Foreign Affairs (Vitalii Nosach, RBC-Ukraine)
Assisting Ukraine in shooting down enemy missiles won't provoke escalation. However, there is another option: providing anti-aircraft defense systems and combat aircraft, stated the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Dmytro Kuleba during a joint press conference with his German counterpart Annalena Baerbock.
According to the minister, there are no arguments against the allies helping Ukraine shoot down Russian missiles over its territory. Those who consider this to be a risk of escalation are manipulating, as the only party escalating is Russia.
“That is why we ask our partners to consider the possibility of intercepting missiles, not planes, but pieces of iron. There is an alternative - just provide us with all the necessary means. We will then intercept the missiles ourselves," Kuleba noted.
The minister added that he was talking about air defense systems and combat aircraft. At the same time, refusing Ukraine both options is only a position of appeasing Russia.
Strikes on Russian territory
Kuleba explains that Ukraine is striking military targets in Russia because “death and destruction come from there.”
"If someone thinks we will wait for our death in a weak position, they wait in vain," adding that the more targets Ukraine destroys in Russia, the sooner the war will end.
Air defense
In recent months, amid intensified Russian strikes on Ukrainian territory, the issue of air defense has become even more crucial. The majority of enemy attacks are aimed at the country's energy infrastructure, which has led to the return of power outage schedules.
In April, Berlin announced an initiative to expand assistance to Ukraine with air defense systems. As Baerbock said today, May 21, Germany has already managed to raise almost 1 billion euros ($1.09 billion).
The issue of air defense was also actively discussed during the last Ramstein meeting. You can find the summary of the meeting at the following link.
