 |
| President Of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky briefs African journalists on 14 November 2023 in Kyiv, Ukraine. (Photo: Office of the President of Ukraine) |
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has emphasised the importance of breaking the "stalemate" in Ukraine's war against Russia, stating that a stalemate is unacceptable and would endow the fight to his country's children. Zelensky criticised General Valerii Zaluzhnyi's opinion that Ukraine has reached a level of technology that puts the country into a stalemate and urged his people to be patient. He noted that Ukraine had experienced a frozen conflict in its eastern Donbas region since Russia infiltrated it in 2014 and that Ukraine needed to bring an end to the war, or it would repeat itself one day.
Zaluzhnyi suggested that Ukraine needed a radical technological breakthrough to break the stalemate, such as a large infusion of sophisticated Western weapons such as American F16 jets. He reiterated that Ukraine could not change the war decisively without F16s and more US Abrams tanks, as Russia had complete air superiority. However, Zelensky acknowledged that Ukraine would have difficulty sparing its pilots from combat duty while they trained to fly the F16s.
Zelensky said Ukraine needed the F16s, the Abrams tanks, and more air defence systems to support its current counteroffensive, which is slowly advancing due to heavy Russian defences. He expressed concern at signs that the financial and military support from the US and the European Union might be drying up, as conservative Republicans in the US Congress block financial aid and pro-Russian Hungary blocks EU financial support. He warned that Russia would welcome any decrease in assistance to Ukraine.
Zelensky accused Russia of complicity in the war between Israel and Hamas, accusing Russia of intervening through its ally Iran to divert world attention from Ukraine and diminish support for Ukraine. Iran openly sponsors Hamas, which provoked the war with Israel by launching an attack on southern Israel on 7 October, killing about 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and taking 240 hostages. Israel responded with a massive ongoing attack on Gaza, in which more than 11,000 people, mostly civilians, have been killed.
President Zelensky believes President Cyril Ramaphosa's visit to Ukraine in June last year changed his attitude towards the Russia-Ukraine war and improved his understanding of it. After meeting Ramaphosa and other African leaders involved in the African peace mission, they could travel on to meet Russian President Vladimir Putin with truthful arguments and not just listen to his false narratives. They left with a better understanding of what Ukraine was fighting for and that it was Russia that had assaulted Ukraine. Zelensky spoke to Ramaphosa about Ukraine's peace formula, which calls for the complete withdrawal of Russian forces from Ukraine.
African leaders arrived in Ukraine with mixed emotions and information about the situation, but they left Ukraine changed. Zelensky's observations reflect a general view that Ramaphosa's visit to Ukraine, during which he was taken to the sites of atrocities by Russian troops against civilians during the first weeks of the war in Bucha, had changed his previously pro-Russian perspective.
Food security is a concern for African countries, as the war in Ukraine has interrupted the exports of grains and other foodstuffs from the country, which was one of the world's major breadbaskets. The war has caused food shortages and spiked prices, especially in Africa. Zelensky assured Africans that Ukraine's parallel grain corridor would remedy the problem, as it had exported about four million tonnes in its first month, about the level of its exports before the war.
Russia is attempting to impede Ukrainian grain exports through attacks on its main port, Odesa, and recently, a missile struck a Liberian-flagged iron ore carrier in the port of Pivdennyi, killing the pilot. Ukraine can export grain through the Black Seat due to Russian naval and aircraft withdrawals. Ukraine is working with the UK to ensure cargo ships carrying grain via the Ukrainian corridor. Ukraine plans to create grain hubs in other countries, including South Africa, to diversify grain sources and reduce Africa's dependence on war conditions. Ukraine is also using different routes to market grain and other foodstuffs.
