US, UK disallowing Kiev's deployment of long-range missiles: Zelensky
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Approving a new bill, the Ukrainian President raises military spending by an additional 495 billion hryvnias ($11.9 billion) in 2024.
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Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky addresses a joint meeting of Congress on Capitol Hill on December 21, 2022. (AP)
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky stated that the United States and the UK have not authorized Ukraine to use Western-supplied long-range missiles against targets within Russia.
“Neither America nor the United Kingdom gave us permission to use these weapons on the territory of Russia, on any targets, at any distance," he noted.
Zelensky suggested that their hesitation stems from concerns about escalating hostilities.
Meanwhile, Russian President Vladimir Putin cautioned the West against allowing Ukraine to use these long-range weapons, asserting that such actions would equate to NATO countries declaring war on Russia.
The Ukrainian President noted that Ukraine's Western allies have increased military support as Ukraine continues to fend off Russian troops in the Donbass region. “(Military aid) accelerated in September. We are glad. We can feel the difference,” he stated.
He acknowledged that Ukraine is at a disadvantage, having fewer personnel and resources compared to Moscow.
The two nations have been at war since Russia initiated its special operation in eastern Ukraine in February 2022. Zelensky also rejected a peace plan proposed by China and Brazil, expressing skepticism about its credibility.
He said, “I don’t think it was a concrete plan. I don’t see any specific action or stages in it, just generalized procedures," and generalizations, according to Zelensky, "always hide something.”
The two countries had suggested hosting an international peace conference where all options would be considered.
Zelensky is set to present a so-called “victory plan” to US President Joe Biden during his visit to Washington next week. He explained, “The plan is designed for decisions that will have to happen from October to December... We would like that very much. Then we believe that the plan will work.”
In response, Russia dismissed Zelensky’s remarks about a potential resolution to the conflict. Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said on Wednesday, “This is not the first time that we have heard such statements from representatives of Kiev.”
“We are continuing our special military operation and will achieve all of our goals," he added.
Zelensky passes $12bln in extra military spending for 2024
It is worth noting that Zelensky signed a law on Saturday that will increase military expenditure by 495 $11.9 billion in 2024.
The 2024 budget amendment bill increases spending by 500 billion hryvnias, with 495 billion hryvnias set aside for security and defense while reducing new spending and loans by 65.7 billion hryvnias.
Ukrainian Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal stated in August that the country's defense budget was more than $12 billion short of its requirements. The parliament decided on Wednesday to revise the budget to close the shortfall.
Roksolana Pidlasa, chairperson of the Ukrainian parliament's budget committee, stated in March that Ukraine has already spent about half of its $87 billion budget on defense. A projected fresh wave of mobilization is predicted to exacerbate the country's budget deficit, with billions more needed for wages, training expenditures, and equipment purchases.
The Financial Times reported on Tuesday that the EU is preparing to provide up to €40 billion in new loans to Ukraine by the end of the year, moving forward without US participation.
This decision comes after a G7 plan to use frozen Russian assets to aid Ukraine faltered due to opposition from Hungary, led by Prime Minister Viktor Orban.
The EU is concerned that Hungary may block the delivery of key safeguards needed for the US to join the frozen asset scheme, prompting Brussels to consider an alternative, unilateral approach.
The new funding aims to support Ukraine's financial stability as it faces a projected $38 billion financing gap in 2025, according to Kiev and the International Monetary Fund (IMF).
West discreetly discussing negotiated Ukraine peace as setbacks mount
Recently, Le Figaro reported that Kiev’s setbacks are leading Western backers to reconsider how to resolve the Russia-Ukraine conflict, citing that Russian forces are advancing “slowly but steadily” in Donbass, nearing the strategic town of Pokrovsk.
After 30 months of fighting, the idea of a negotiated settlement is being "discreetly" discussed in the US, EU, and even Ukraine, the French newspaper said on Monday.
The paper noted that “in the West, it is increasingly openly acknowledged that Donbass and Crimea are beyond the military reach of the Ukrainians.”
Although Kiev’s incursion into Russia’s Kursk Region may have met its political goals, it did not prompt Moscow to withdraw forces from other areas of the frontline, the newspaper stressed.
The article notes that Washington is blocking Kiev from conducting long-range strikes into Russian territory due to fears of escalating tensions with Moscow, including the risk of nuclear conflict. An unnamed French official told Le Figaro that "Whoever the US president is [after the election in November], the aid will decrease and the war will not be sustainable for the Ukrainians."
Germany recently cut military aid to Ukraine, and France “lost the initiative” after President Emmanuel Macron dissolved parliament in June. Additionally, the West “misjudged” Russia’s strong ties with allies in the Global South and Asia, including China, Iran, and the Democratic People's Republic of Korea, the paper added.
Moreover, a senior French diplomat told Le Figaro that Paris is now advocating for a "lasting and negotiated solution to the war, with Ukraine in a position of strength to assert its rights and security against Russia."
The outlet noted that a new "peace summit" on Ukraine could now occur in Abu Dhabi after the US elections in November, following an unsuccessful gathering in Switzerland this summer.
A French official emphasized that the West must decide "what could be considered a victory for Ukraine," asking whether it should be a "territorial victory" to reclaim allegedly regions now under Russia's control or a "political victory" under the notion of "a free and democratic country, turned towards the West, engaged in the EU and NATO, even if it means giving up, temporarily, the occupied territories?"
