Ukrainian President Volodimir Zelenski said this Saturday (4) that the conflict between Israel and the Palestinian terrorist group Hamas has taken the focus away from the War in Ukraine.
The statement was made at a press conference with the head of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, who is on an official visit to Kiev.
“Of course it is clear that the war in the Middle East, this conflict, is taking away the focus,” said the Ukrainian leader.
Von der Leyen said she would talk to the leader about the bloc’s financial support “to rebuild Ukraine as a modern and prosperous democracy.”
Next week, the European Union is expected to release an update on Ukraine’s entry process into the bloc, which began days after the outbreak of war against Russia in February 2022.
According to Zelenski, the country is committed to continuing with reforms, including strengthening anti-corruption practices.
Von der Leyen will also address other topics, such as European military support for Ukraine and a new European Union sanctions package against Russia — which is currently being prepared, according to the leader.
This is her sixth visit to Ukraine since the start of the Russian invasion in February 2022.
“The most important message is to reaffirm that we will stand by Ukraine for as long as necessary,” she insisted. “It’s true that the world’s attention is now more focused on the Middle East,” she admitted. “But I had already planned this trip [a Kiev] long time.”
On Thursday (2), the commander of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, General Valeri Zalujni, told the British magazine The Economist that Ukraine’s counteroffensive against the Russian occupation forces on its territory had failed in its main objective, five months after being launched, casting doubt on the effectiveness of the massive support given by the West to the action.
“Just like in the First World Cup, we have reached a point where technology has put us at an impasse,” he said. “There probably won’t be any deep, beautiful breakthroughs,” he said, from the anticipated campaign launched on June 4 by the Ukrainians.
This is the harshest Ukrainian assessment yet of the counteroffensive’s problems, which have been reported for months. Russian defensive lines along the main focuses of action, in the south and east of the country, were much stronger than anticipated.
