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Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has once again called on the West to urgently supply his country with long-range weapons, after his forces advanced in Russia's Kursk region.
The ability of the Ukrainian armed forces to use such weapons against Russia is the most important strategic issue in this war, Zelensky said in his evening video message released in Kyiv on Saturday.
He stressed that there is a lack of necessary decisions on the part of Western allies at the present time, pointing to the example of the United Kingdom, which he said has become slower to move.
Zelensky added that the courage and resilience of Ukrainian soldiers currently compensate for the hesitation of Western partners. He added: “We can seize any opportunity for the occupier to advance and cause damage if our long-range capabilities are sufficient.”
He has repeatedly called for permission to use cruise missiles and rockets against targets in Russia. At the moment, there are restrictions on this.
Zelensky added that the world has seen how effectively Ukraine has defended its independence and needs more help.
Zelensky again referred to a conversation with the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces, Oleksandr Syrsky, who informed him of further advances in the Russian Kursk region.
“The operation is going exactly as we expected. The courage of the Ukrainians is achieving great achievements. Now we are strengthening our positions,” Zelensky said.
He also mentioned again that Ukraine is capturing more and more Russian prisoners of war in the Kursk region to replenish the numbers for the upcoming exchange with Russia. The goal is to return soldiers and civilians home from Russian captivity.
According to the latest information from Kiev, Ukraine controls more than 80 villages and 1,500 square kilometers of territory in the Kursk region.
These claims cannot be independently verified by the warring parties. Experts estimate that the figures cited by Kiev are about half those.
There are about 10,000 Ukrainian soldiers deployed in the Kursk region.
Zelensky, with the offensive that began on August 6, aims to increase pressure on Moscow to end the fighting through negotiations after nearly two and a half years of full-scale Russian invasion.
But from the Russian point of view, such negotiations seem more remote because of the Ukrainian offensive.
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