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 Russia's invasion of Ukraine

Zelensky: We would have had peace - if we had received Western weapons

Of:

Manne Berggren Wiklund

PUBLISHED: LESS THAN 40 MIN THEN

NEWS

Russia has now launched the new major offensive against eastern Ukraine.

In Mariupol, the Ukrainian defense has been pushed back and the remaining soldiers believe they have only a few hours left to live.

At the same time, Zelensky says that the war could have been over - if they had received the weapons they wanted.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov says a new phase of the "special operation" has begun.

The bombings in the east have intensified and the siege of Mariupol continues. There, the Ukrainian defense has been pushed back and they are now defending themselves in the Azovstal steelworks.

But according to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, the situation could have been different. Had Ukraine received more and better weapons from the West, the president believes that the war had already ended.

"Had we had access to the weapons we need, which our partners have and which can be compared with the weapons used by Russia, we would have already ended this war," Zelensky said in a speech during the night.

 

President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky.

Photo: AP

Will send weapons

Zelensky has previously written on Twitter that what Ukraine wants is heavy artillery, armored vehicles, air defense systems and fighter jets.

More weapons will also be sent to Ukraine. According to several American media, the United States plans to send a new weapons package worth 800 million dollars in the near future. And further deliveries from other NATO countries will also be on their way to Ukraine.

But Zelensky will not get everything he has asked for, to the extent he wants. As NATO countries want to avoid being directly involved in the conflict, the issue of sending aircraft to Ukraine in particular has been avoided.

Instead, Britain and the United States will send cannons and artillery, Germany has promised to send armored vehicles and ammunition, and the Czech Republic says they will receive and repair Ukrainian armored vehicles, writes the BBC.

At the same time, the Pentagon states that aircraft and aircraft parts will be sent to Ukraine, but they will not be sent from the United States. The Pentagon does not want to go into exactly what type of aircraft and from where they will be sent, but the Ukrainian air force will receive support in some form according to the United States.

The port city of Mariupol has been under attack since day one and hundreds of thousands of people have lived trapped without water and electricity surrounded by Russian forces.

The port city of Mariupol has been under attack since day one and hundreds of thousands of people have lived trapped without water and electricity surrounded by Russian forces.

Photo: Alexei Alexandrov / AP

Are completely surrounded

Russia is now gathering strength to push through the major offensive in the east. According to Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu, the plan is to "completely liberate eastern Ukraine".

There, the port city of Mariupol has become central to the battle for eastern Ukraine. It has been under attack since day one and hundreds of thousands of people have lived trapped without water and electricity surrounded by Russian forces. Now only a small resistance remains.

The Ukrainian soldiers have barricaded themselves in the steelworks and the Soviet industrial complex Azovstal.

There, Ukrainian soldiers are in the steelworks' underground and nuclear-safe bunkers and passages. According to Ukraine, hundreds of civilians are also in the area.

- We are completely surrounded. There are about 500 injured soldiers here who do not receive care. They are literally rotting. There are also civilians suffering from explosions. The Russians bombed us with aircraft and fired at us with artillery, "said Major Serhiy Volyna, who has command of the remaining forces in Mariupol to CNN last night.

- The enemy is dozens more. They have a total advantage in the air, artillery, materiel and troops. We fight to the last man, but we only have days or hours left, he says to the TV channel.