Ukraine-Russia war latest: Zelensky says Patriot missiles could ‘close our skies’ but are just gathering dust
Ukrainian president’s plea comes after Russian missile killed at least four people in Zaporizhzhia
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Your support makes all the difference.Ukraine would be able to completely defend its skies if it received around a dozen more Patriot air defence systems from Western allies, Volodymyr Zelensky has said, urging them not to let the systems “gather dust”.
Signalling his frustration, the Ukrainian president said: “I sometimes do not get it... Everyone understands that an additional 10-12 Patriot systems for Ukraine will ensure life for us and make the war for (Russian president Vladimir) Putin meaningless.
“We repeat again and again that air defences should save lives, not gather dust at storage bases,” he said.
His plea came after a Russian missile killed at least four people and injured 20 more, including a child, in the southeastern city of Zaporizhzhia.
Also in the Zaporizhzhia region, a drone hit and severely damaged an official vehicle from the UN nuclear watchdog, the International Atomic Energy Agency, on the road to the Russian-held nuclear power plant there yesterday.
While the UN team is safe, the agency’s chief Rafael Grossi repeated his calls for “utmost restraint” from both sides.
In Russia, an overnight missile attack has damaged an industrial facility and set ablaze at least 14 of cars in Taganrog in Rostov.
Russia seizes eastern Ukraine village of Zhovte, state media says
Russian state media reports that its forces have captured the village of Zhovte in eastern Ukraine.
The TASS state news agency cited the defence ministry as its source but Reuters could not independently confirm the report.
Kremlin says Ukraine war will go on until Putin's goals are met on battlefield
The Kremlin said on Tuesday that the Ukraine war would continue until president Vladimir Putin’s goals were met, either through military action or negotiations.
Putin has asked that Ukraine forsake its aspirations to join NATO and withdraw completely from four regions of the country that Russia claims as its own, proposals that Kyiv has rejected as akin to capitulation.
“The special military operation will end when all of the objectives set by the president and commander-in-chief have been achieved,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters, using Moscow’s euphemism for the fight.
“These goals can be achieved as a result of the special military operation or a result of relevant negotiations.”
Peskov said no talks between Moscow and Kyiv were currently underway because “the Ukrainian side refuses any negotiations”.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy on Monday made the case for a diplomatic settlement to the war and raised the idea of foreign troops being deployed in Ukraine until it could join NATO.
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