Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez reiterated on Saturday in Kiev, on the first day of the Spanish presidency of the European Union, the EU’s support for Ukraine, which however deplores the slowness of the military aid promised by the Westerners.
“From the point of view of the European Union on Ukraine’s accession, my presence on the first day of this six-month presidency (…) proves a clear and unequivocal political commitment on the part of the Community institutions” , assured Mr. Sanchez during a joint press conference with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.
“It is extremely symbolic that this visit takes place on the very first day of Spain’s EU presidency,” Zelensky also stressed on social media.
The visit comes ahead of an important NATO summit scheduled for July 11-12 in Vilnius to lay out a roadmap for future relations between Ukraine and the Western military organization.
“Spain reiterates its support for Ukraine’s candidacy for the EU, which will be one of the priorities of its presidency”, according to the joint declaration adopted by MM. Sanchez and Zelensky.
“Spain supports the strengthening of the partnership between NATO and Ukraine, including through the creation of a NATO-Ukraine Council,” the statement said.
The Spanish Prime Minister had announced this visit Thursday at the EU summit, explaining that his aim was to show “the unshakable support” of the Union in kyiv in the face of the Russian invasion.
Ukraine obtained EU candidate status a year ago, and hopes to begin the first formal negotiations this year on the steps it will need to take to boost its chances of membership.
President Zelensky nevertheless reiterated his criticisms of “certain” Western partners on the training of Ukrainian airmen in the piloting of combat aircraft.
“Do they have any idea when Ukraine will be able to get F-16s?” he said alongside Mr. Sanchez. “There is no training mission schedule. I think some partners are dragging their feet,” he added.
These criticisms coincide with the announcement by kyiv of limited gains in its counter-offensive to try to recover part of the territories occupied by Russia.
Sixteen months after the start of the Russian invasion, Ukraine said on Saturday that it was waging “relentless” battles as part of this counter-offensive launched about a month ago.
The Ukrainian army is hampered by a lack of armament, in particular American-made F-16 fighter jets, said its commander-in-chief Valery Zaluzhny in an interview published Friday by the Washington Post.
“We don’t need 120 planes. I’m not going to threaten the entire planet. A small number will be enough,” he told the American daily. “But they are necessary, there is no other solution”.
He also deplores a lack of artillery in the face of the deluge of Russian fire.
If Valery Zaloujny says he is in permanent contact with his Western partners, like the American Chief of Staff Mark Milley, it is not they who make the decisions, he regrets.
“By the time decisions are made, it is obvious that many people are dying, every day, and in large numbers. Simply because the decisions are not made right away,” he insists.
In Washington, Mark Milley replied that the United States and its allies were doing their best to send what Ukraine needs.
“We are giving them all the help we can,” he told reporters on Friday. Delivering them F-16s or ATACMS tactical missiles is “on the table, but no decision has been made yet,” he added.
The counter-offensive “is going slower than we predicted”, he also felt, but “war is like that”.
The Ukrainian army is nevertheless making “continuous advances”, “500, 1,000, 2,000 meters per day, that sort of thing”, noted the American chief of staff.
In addition, an American official confirmed to AFP that the director of the CIA William Burns had recently traveled to Ukraine to meet with the heads of the Ukrainian secret services, as well as Mr. Zelensky.
During this trip, he explained, Mr. Burns reaffirmed “the commitment of the United States to share all information necessary to help Ukraine defend itself against Russian aggression”.
07/01/2023 16:37:26 – Kiev (Ukraine) (AFP) © 2023 AFP
