Heavy Russian missile hits show how vulnerable Ukraine is from the air. Kyiv is hoping for new weapons in order – as one politician says – to shut down the skies over Ukraine. The overview.
Political support from New York, promises of new weapons from Brussels – Ukraine has received support for its defense against the Russian invasion on two international stages. The United Nations General Assembly condemned Moscow’s illegal annexation of Ukrainian territories by a large majority and declared it null and void. 143 of the 193 member states voted in New York on Wednesday for a corresponding resolution – 5 countries voted against, 35 abstained.
At a meeting of the Ukraine contact group in Brussels, many states pledged new anti-aircraft and missile defense weapons, according to Kiev. The group of about 50 states coordinates military aid. “This is historic because decisions were made to close the skies over Ukraine,” Ukraine’s Presidential Office head Andrei Yermak wrote on Twitter. Russia had fired massive rockets at major Ukrainian cities since Monday. Thursday marks the 232nd day of the war in Ukraine.
Russia isolated in the United Nations
In its resolution, the UN General Assembly called on Russia to undo the annexation of the partially occupied regions of Luhansk, Donetsk, Zaporizhia and Cherson. At the end of September, Kremlin chief Vladimir Putin announced the annexation after mock referendums. The UN resolution is not binding under international law. However, it is considered a strong political sign and reveals Moscow’s international isolation. Only Belarus, North Korea, Nicaragua and Syria voted with Russia.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy hailed the decision as historic: “The world has spoken – Russia’s attempted annexation is worthless and will never be recognized by free nations,” he wrote on Twitter. US Secretary of State Antony Blinken sees the majority as a strong sign of international unity. The condemnation was even clearer from a UN vote in March against the Russian invasion – at that time 141 countries opposed Moscow.
Brazil, Turkey and Saudi Arabia also voted in favor of the resolution on Wednesday. With China and India, however, two powerful states with a population of around 2.8 billion abstained. More than a dozen African countries also abstained.
Ukraine grateful for new anti-aircraft weapons
Thanks to Russian rocket terror, the world understands that protecting the skies over Ukraine “is one of Europe’s most important humanitarian tasks in our time,” Zelensky said. He thanked all partners who are stepping up their efforts for effective Ukrainian air defense. He did not give details; and not all commitments by defense ministers in the so-called Ramstein format in Brussels on Wednesday were made public.
But the British government announced that it would be delivering AMRAAM anti-aircraft missiles to Ukraine for the first time. The missiles, in conjunction with the US-promised NASAMS air defense system, can intercept cruise missiles. They should be brought to Ukraine in the coming weeks, the Ministry of Defense said in London on Thursday night: “The missiles will help protect Ukraine’s critical infrastructure.”
In addition, London wants to deliver hundreds of other types of anti-aircraft missiles, 18 artillery pieces and hundreds of reconnaissance drones to Ukraine. For France, President Emmanuel Macron announced new arms deliveries, including anti-aircraft weapons. Germany has just sent a state-of-the-art Iris-T SLM air defense system to Ukraine, with more to come.
Seven dead in Avdiivka in Donbass
Fighting in Ukraine continued unabated. Seven people were killed by Russian shelling of the city of Avdiivka in the Donbass, Zelenskyj reported in his evening video address. Avdiivka has been the Ukrainian-held frontline town opposite the separatist capital Donetsk since 2014.
The Ukrainian General Staff registered further Russian rocket and air strikes on residential buildings and objects of civilian infrastructure. Wednesday’s situation report from Kyiv spoke of three rocket attacks and four cases of shelling by planes. Multiple rocket launchers were used ten times. Of the ten targets hit, most were in the front-line areas of Zaporizhia and Mykolaiv to the south.
In addition, the Russian army continues to use Iranian-made combat drones, ten of which have been shot down. The Ukrainian military data were not independently verifiable.
Macron continues to rely on a diplomatic solution
French President Macron said he was ready to talk to Kremlin chief Putin at any time. A diplomatic solution is needed in the Ukraine war. “Vladimir Putin must end this war, respect Ukraine’s territorial integrity and return to the negotiating table,” Macron told France 2. The question arises as to whether war goals such as Ukraine’s territorial integrity can only be achieved militarily.
New Ukrainian ambassador Makejev comes to Berlin
The new Ukrainian ambassador Oleksiy Makejev is expected in Berlin early next week. As the German Press Agency learned from Ukrainian government circles, the previous special representative for the sanctions against Russia should arrive at his new place of work from Kyiv on Monday. Two days earlier – on Saturday – the current ambassador Andriy Melnyk will leave Germany. He is to take up a post in the Foreign Ministry in Kyiv. Born in 1975, Makejev, who, like Melnyk, speaks German well, used to work at the embassy in Berlin.
That will be important on Thursday
After talks in Russia, the head of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), Rafael Grossi, is expected in Kyiv. He wants to speak there about the dangerous situation in the Zaporizhia nuclear power plant in southern Ukraine, which is occupied by the Russian army.
Under the impression of the Russian war against Ukraine, the NATO defense ministers want to discuss the expansion of air defense in Europe in Brussels.
According to the Turkish Presidential Office, Kremlin boss Putin and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan want to meet in the Kazakh capital Astana. The meeting is scheduled to take place on the sidelines of the Summit of the Conference on Cooperation and Confidence-Building Measures in Asia (CICA).