Ukraine’s president said Saturday that he is confident his war-ravaged country’s recently launched counteroffensive will end in victory over Russia despite an “unprecedented” barrage of missile and drone attacks in recent weeks.
“We strongly believe that we will succeed,” Volodymyr Zelensky said in an interview with the Wall Street Journal.
“I don’t know how long it will take. To be honest, it can go a variety of ways, completely different. But we are going to do it and we are ready.”
The optimism was echoed by Ukraine’s deputy defense minister, who called Russia’s use of ballistic missiles in May “a last strategic resort,” noting that Ukraine’s air defense system had been “more than 90 percent effective against the attacks.”
Volodymyr Havrylov said that in addition to cruise missile strikes, Ukraine had faced continuous ballistic missile attacks in May, especially in urban centers including the capital, Kyiv.
“Their primary goal is to stop our counteroffensive and target decision-making centers,” said Havrylov, who was attending the Shangri-La Dialogue, an international security conference, in Singapore Saturday.
Zelensky, 45, is hopeful that a counteroffensive to reclaim territory will change the dynamics of the war that has raged since Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022.
But the Ukrainian leader did admit that “a large number of soldiers will die” on the frontlines of the new effort due to Russia’s superior air power.
Last month, Zelensky said Ukraine needed to wait for more Western armored vehicles to arrive before launching the counteroffensive, and has been on a diplomatic mission to bolster Western support, which he said is key for Ukraine to succeed in its plans.
He also said that Ukraine urgently needs more US-made Patriot missile defense systems to protect civilians from air attacks. Zelensky told the outlet that he would have liked to have had the weapons before launching the counteroffensive.
“We would like to have certain things, but we can’t wait for months,” he said, adding that if his country is unable to hold off Russia, “that animal, the beast, will develop a taste” for further invasions of other nations.
Russia holds parcels of Ukrainian territory in the east, south and southeast of the country.
On Saturday, Ukraine’s military said in a daily briefing that Mariinka in the Donetsk region in the east was the focus of the fighting. Ukrainian forces repelled all 14 Russian troops’ attacks there.
As optimistic as Zelensky feels about Ukraine’s counteroffensive, he did admit to the Journal that he’s concerned about the US’ 2024 presidential election.
President Biden, 80, has sent more than $37 billion to the war-torn country, including another $300 million for weapons earlier this month. Meanwhile, former President Trump, 2024’s Republican frontrunner, has boasted that he would end the Ukraine war “within 24 hours” of leading peace talks, but the 76-year-old has refused to reveal how.
“In a situation like this, when there is support, you are afraid of changes,” Zelensky said. “And to be honest, when you mention a change of administration, I feel the same way as any other person — you want changes for the better, but it can also be the other way around.”
