Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky told The New York Times on Tuesday that he will urge the leaders of the US, the UK, and France to support long-range strikes inside Russia, a step that would make a direct NATO-Russia war much more likely.
The Ukrainian leader is currently in New York for the UN General Assembly and will meet with President Biden at the White House on Thursday. “For today, they have to give, or say that they will not give,” Zelensky said in an interview conducted at the UN in New York. “Do they really want us to prevail, or is it about something long, some terrible and long tragedy?”
While the US has yet to give Ukraine the greenlight for long-range strikes with NATO missiles inside Russia, some NATO countries have been outspoken in their support for the escalation.
Zelensky was interviewed alongside Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen, who strongly supports letting Ukraine do what it wants with NATO weapons. “I don’t think Ukraine can win with one arm on their back,” she told The New York Times.
“So I think we need to end that discussion, to give what is needed, and actually to put it the other way around — ask Ukraine what is needed to win this war. And then we have to ensure that they will have what they need,” Frederiksen added.
Russian President Vladimir Putin has warned that supporting long-range strikes on Russian territory would mean NATO is at war with Russia. A direct NATO-Russia war could quickly turn nuclear, but the risk of nuclear war is not part of Ukraine’s calculations.
The Washington Post reported on Tuesday that the concerns over the risk of nuclear war are “mocked” inside Ukraine. The report said Ukrainian officials were growing increasingly frustrated over the US’s hesitation to support long-range strikes.
“We think the permission should be granted yesterday, not today or tomorrow,” a Ukrainian official told the Post. “Otherwise, the phrase ‘We want to see Ukraine as strong as possible for any scenario’ looks like total BS.”
US officials have said even if they approve the long-range strikes, Ukraine doesn’t have enough of the US-provided ATACM missiles or British and French-provided Storm Shadows to make a difference in its fight against Russia. The US has also said that Russia has moved most of its fighter jets beyond the range of the NATO missiles.
The Times of London reported last week that Zelensky may get permission to fire Storm Shadow missiles into Russian territory while he’s in the US this week, but it wouldn’t become public until the first missile hits Russia.
