Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky called on NATO countries to lift restrictions on the use of weapons on Russian territory on the final day of a NATO summit.
"If we want to win, if we want to prevail, if we want to save our country and protect it, we must lift all restrictions," he said at a news conference alongside NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg, AFP reported.
Several NATO countries impose restrictions on the use of the weapons they supply to Ukraine, preventing it from striking Russian positions from which attacks on its cities and infrastructure are regularly launched. These countries, like Germany, fear an escalation of the conflict with Russia.
However, Zelensky welcomed the military aid package for his country agreed by the 32 NATO countries at their summit in Washington on 9 July. These are "very important decisions", he stressed.
The allies announced the imminent transfer of US-built F-16s, new air defense systems, a financial commitment of at least 40 billion euros in military aid and the "irreversible" nature of Ukraine's path to NATO membership.
Zelensky expressed hope that the five air defense systems promised by NATO would arrive in Ukraine "as soon as possible". He recalled the deadly Russian strikes earlier this week that devastated a children's hospital in Kiev and killed 43 people across the country.
The Ukrainian president also expressed confidence that his country would one day join NATO, although its allies have not extended an invitation.
"We are doing and will continue to do everything in our power to ensure that the day will come when Ukraine receives an invitation and become a member of NATO, and I am convinced that we will succeed," he said.
At this summit marking the 75th anniversary of the Atlantic alliance, NATO leaders also expressed concern about China's assistance to Russia in its war against Ukraine.
They raised this issue at a meeting with their Asia-Pacific partners. Beijing sees NATO's invitation to Australia, Japan, South Korea and New Zealand as a pretext for NATO to expand its influence in Asia.
In an unusual statement on July 9, Atlantic Alliance leaders expressed their "deep concern" as they condemned China's "decisive role" alongside Russia following the February 2022 invasion of Ukraine.
NATO accuses China of supplying Russia with dual-use civilian and military equipment, such as microprocessors. All this equipment allows Moscow "to produce missiles, bombs, aircraft and weapons," Stoltenberg said.
China's foreign ministry accused NATO of "prejudice, vilification and provocation."
The summit in Washington was also marked by a climate of political uncertainty in the United States.
US President Joe Biden, the summit's host, is due to give a press conference after weeks of questions about his health and his ability to face his Republican rival Donald Trump in November's presidential election.
On the sidelines of that summit, the White House announced that by 2026, the United States will deploy new ad hoc weapons in Germany that will allow strikes at greater ranges than the US systems currently deployed in Europe.
"This is a necessary and important decision taken at the right time," said German Chancellor Olaf Scholz.
In Moscow, this statement and NATO's stepped-up support for Ukraine was seen as evidence of NATO's "direct" involvement in Ukraine and a return "to the Cold War." | BGNES
