And then the Ukrainians reflected on their own predicament, locked in more than two years of a full-scale war with their larger invading neighbor. Far from the front lines, Russia has launched wave after wave of relentless and indiscriminate drone and missile attacks on Ukrainian cities, hitting commercial areas, power plants and residential buildings.
“The whole world saw that Israel was not alone in this defense: the threat in the sky was also eliminated by its allies,” Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said after the weekend’s events. “And when Ukraine says its allies must not turn a blind eye to Russian missiles and drones, that means action is needed – bold action. »
Zelensky had new reason to be frustrated Wednesday after Russian cruise missiles struck the city center of Chernihiv in northern Ukraine. The strike – one of Russia’s deadliest attacks in recent months – killed at least 17 people and injured more than 60 others. “This would not have happened if Ukraine had received enough air defense equipment and the world’s determination to counter Russian terrorism was also sufficient,” Zelensky wrote on Telegram. “There must be sufficient commitment from partners and sufficient support to reflect this. »
In the aftermath of the attack in Chernihiv, close to the Russian border, Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba lamented that his country did not have what was so willingly provided to Israel. “These innocent people would not have been killed or injured if Ukraine had sufficient air defense capabilities,” Kuleba wrote on social media. “Three days ago in the Middle East we saw what reliable protection of human lives from missiles looks like. »
With a vital slice of U.S. aid still blocked in Congress, kyiv desperately needs help. Its artillery units are facing a serious shortage of shells. Its exhausted battalions are struggling with a lack of new recruits. And its political leaders are appealing to the West to provide more fighter jets and missile defense systems to deal with Russian air assaults.
Ukraine’s second largest city, Kharkiv, is among the places most affected by these attacks. About 30 miles from the border with Russia and once nearly captured by Russian forces, Kharkiv has suffered a surge in Russian bombing since late last year. “The city has been targeted by more ballistic missiles than at any time since the start of the war. Drone assaults have become more frequent: they fly faster and higher, and their wings are covered in a carbon coating that makes taking them down more difficult,” noted The Economist.
Russia was also able to send fighter jets to drop payloads of Soviet-era glide bombs over the city. Ukrainians understandably want help to counter such attacks, which this year have killed dozens of civilians in the region and targeted civilian infrastructure, including power plants. “We need this support to prevent Kharkiv from becoming a second Aleppo,” Kharkiv Mayor Ihor Terekhov told the British Guardian newspaper, comparing his city’s ordeal to what happened to the Syrian metropolis two years ago. ten years ago.
The odds are not in Ukraine’s favor. A report released Monday by the Institute for the Study of War notes that Israel’s successful defense against the Iranian attack “underscores the vulnerabilities that Ukraine’s geography and the continued degradation of Ukraine’s air defense system pose to Ukrainian efforts to defend against regular Russian missile and drone strikes. »
Then there is uncertainty about what might come from the West. In Washington, efforts by U.S. lawmakers to pass a Ukraine spending bill gained traction Wednesday. In Europe, senior German officials announced an initiative to quickly send air defense equipment to kyiv’s forces. “We and our partners around the world must now be equally determined in our defense against Russian air terrorism,” German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock said ahead of the G7 ministerial meeting on the Italian island of Capri. “Stronger air defenses are a matter of life and death for thousands of people in Ukraine and are the best protection for our own security. »
Yet Western officials are reluctant to provide Ukraine with the same type of cover they provide Israel, including dispatching their own fighters to intercept the missiles. “If you want to avoid escalation in terms of a wider European war, I think the only thing you have to avoid is NATO troops directly engaging Russian troops,” said the British foreign minister. Foreign Affairs, David Cameron, to British radio station LBC. “This would constitute a risk of escalation.”
Other European diplomats feel Ukraine’s indignation more keenly. “During the Iranian attack on Israel, some Western countries helped protect Israeli skies as an important act of solidarity,” Lithuanian Foreign Minister Gabrielius Landsbergis told Politico. “For more than two years now, kyiv has continued to request the same type of protection from the same group of countries. I am sure Ukraine will raise the argument that if a non-NATO country has benefited from air defense when attacked by a hostile adversary, why should Ukraine be treated any differently? Given the dire and urgent situation Ukraine is currently facing, this argument is quite convincing.”
On Wednesday, Zelensky reiterated his desire for such solidarity. “Our Ukrainian skies and those of our neighbors deserve the same security,” he said. “And I thank all those who also see our need for security as a need for equal security for all, because all lives are of equal value. »
washingtonpost
