DUkrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky says he expects new bilateral security agreements with allied states as well as further arms deliveries. “There will be new defense packages,” said Zelenskyj on Saturday in his evening video message broadcast in Kiev. There should also be further agreements on security guarantees for Ukraine in January and February. He didn't give any details. According to Zelenskyj, Ukraine was the first country to conclude such an agreement with Great Britain.
“This architecture of security guarantees is a new architecture,” said the head of state. This will effectively restore international law. He was grateful to the friends of Ukraine who understood that decisions on the battlefield must be made now and should not be postponed because otherwise it would cost lives.
“Our steadfastness now, the destruction of the enemy now is vital. There should be no illusions that Russia can succeed in anything,” Zelensky said. He also thanked the country's defenders and everyone who helped “so that our people, our state can win this year.” Ukraine has been defending itself against the Russian war of aggression for almost two years. In its defensive battle, the country is dependent on billions in aid as well as weapons and ammunition deliveries from the West. The second anniversary of the invasion started by Kremlin leader Vladimir Putin is February 24th.
The bilateral security agreements sought by Zelensky are intended to bridge the period until Ukraine becomes a member of NATO, as demanded by Kiev. However, there is currently no agreement within the military alliance to accept Ukraine.
Slovakia does not want Ukraine to join NATO
Slovakia rejects Ukraine joining NATO and wants to veto it if necessary. Prime Minister Robert Fico said this on public radio RTVS in Bratislava. The left-wing nationalist head of government announced that he would travel to Ukraine on Wednesday morning and meet his colleague Denys Schmyhal in the border town of Uzhhorod. He wanted to present a new humanitarian aid package to Shmyhal, but at the same time he also wanted to bluntly explain the Slovak positions that differ from the Ukrainian wishes.
“I tell him that we will block and veto Ukrainian accession to NATO because it would be nothing other than the basis for a third world war,” Fico said. However, Slovakia is in favor of Ukraine joining the EU if the country meets the same conditions as other candidate countries.
The head of government, criticized by his opponents as “pro-Russian”, once again emphasized that Slovakia would no longer supply arms from army stocks to the neighboring country attacked by Russia. However, arms sales by Slovakian arms companies are still permitted.
Meanwhile, according to British assessments, Russian forces are still making no progress in their attacks on a Ukrainian position on the Dnipro River. The British Ministry of Defense in London said they had failed in all attempts to drive out the Ukrainians there. The Russians are most likely superior in terms of strength there.
“It is very likely that the poor training and coordination of Russian forces in this area limits their offensive capabilities,” the British wrote on X (formerly Twitter). It is an important goal of the Russians to force Ukraine to retreat on the south bank of the river.
The British assume that Russia will therefore continue its attacks around the town of Krynky in southern Ukraine in the coming weeks “despite increasing personnel losses”. The Ukrainians hold a bridgehead on the river. The ministry in London said they had repelled the attacks so far, but had problems with supplies.
According to Federal Agriculture Minister Cem Özdemir, exports of agricultural products from Ukraine have continued to stabilize. The Green politician said on Saturday after an agriculture ministers' conference in Berlin that the Ukrainian department head Mykola Solskyi had reported there “that agricultural exports are now back to where they were before the war.” In view of the ongoing Russian war, this is “an immense success”.
European efforts to enable transport across the Black Sea also contributed to this. This is subject to the development of the war. Özdemir also pointed out that fields in Ukraine were mined and agricultural workers were deployed in the army.
In connection with criticism in some EU states about grain imports from Ukraine to the European market, Özdemir called for a fact-based discussion. The EU Commission was asked to present well-founded figures. He also advocated for discussions to be held together and no longer about each other. The headline reads: “We want to avoid anything that benefits Vladimir Putin,” said Özdemir, referring to the Russian president.
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