Zelensky to press Nato for air defence systems after intense Russian strikes

Ukraine's president plans to use the Nato meeting in Turkey to urge Kyiv's allies to deliver the air defence systems it urgently needs to protect it from escalating Russian attacks.

Volodymyr Zelensky's call for help rings with extra intensity after Russian missiles rained down on the Ukrainian capital twice in less than a week, crashing into blocks of flats and killing more than 50 civilians.

The summit in Ankara will also be a chance for Zelensky to hold a crucial meeting with Donald Trump and press home his case that Russia's "brutal" attacks are a show of weakness, not strength, and that Vladimir Putin should be pressured into talks towards a "dignified" peace.

The latest strikes on Ukraine come as it has been stepping up its own long-range drone attacks against Russia, hitting oil refineries and military targets there and causing significant fuel shortages and power cuts.

Underscoring that threat, Moscow's mayor Sergei Sobyanin said anti-air defences intercepted "most" of the 430 unmanned aerial drones fired by Ukraine towards the capital overnight. The severity of the damage was not immediately clear.

Russian social media accounts are full of videos of people queuing for hours to buy petrol and fighting over what little they're allowed.

On the eve of the Nato gathering, which will be held on Tuesday and Wednesday, Zelensky voiced hope that the meeting in Turkey would not be "empty".

Every night, Ukraine demonstrates to the world its pioneering technology in the art of real defense against drones and slower moving missiles at a price that can be maintained at scale. Ukraine is revolutionizing the art of war.

Unfortunately, every night it is also revealed that defense against high-speed missiles is a technology obtainable only at the highest cost. The United States has developed such technology in the form of patriot missiles, but they are expensive per copy and, in the wake of the Iran war, President Trump claims that we have too few of them to permit the sale of Patriots to Ukraine.

Last night, at least 22 people were killed by Russian missiles in Ukraine, so President Zelinski is expected to renew his call for access to these missiles.

A win-win solution permits European nations, including Ukraine, to be licensed to produce the Patriot missile systems. Although proprietary secret technology would inevitably be broadened perhaps sooner than otherwise, the gain for America would prove well worth that risk.

First, the American treasury would be enriched by a royalty for every missile produced. Second, the security of Europe would be immeasurably increased, thus secondarily improving the security of the United States. Third, the cost of the technology would be rapidly reduced as these missiles are produced at scale and the technology itself advances. Fourth, the power of Russia to intimidate its neighbors, and ultimately American interests in places like the Arctic, would be checkmated.

A win-win-win for America, European nations, and Ukraine.

--- "A win-win-win for America, European nations, and Ukraine."

Odd. That sounds quite like a classic proxy war, in which other nations offer all assistance other than direct involvement, though you eschewed the lingo in another thread. Since it would be a "win-win-win" in your estimation, it is recommended that you offer your advice to the proper authorities:

U.S. Consulate General Düsseldorf
Willi-Becker-Allee 10
40227 Düsseldorf
Federal Republic of Germany
Tel.: +49-30-8305-0
U.S. Consulate General Frankfurt
Gießener Str. 30
60435 Frankfurt am Main
Federal Republic of Germany
Phone: (069) 7535-0
U.S. Consulate General Hamburg
Kehrwieder 8
20457 Hamburg
Federal Republic of Germany
Phone (030) 8305-0
U.S. Consulate General Leipzig
Wilhelm-Seyfferth-Straße 4
04107 Leipzig
Federal Republic of Germany
Tel: +49-30-8305-0
U.S. Consulate General Munich
Königinstraße 5
80539 München
Federal Republic of Germany
Tel.: +49-89-2888-0

Additionally you might want to offer your advice directly to the US administration: White House Contact Form, Washington, DC

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