Ukraine War: Zelenskiy urges stronger air defence to protect grain exports

Speaking at an international conference on food security in Kyiv on Saturday, President Volodymyr Zelenskiy stated that Ukraine needs more air defences to safeguard both its grain export routes and its bordering regions with Russia.

At the Grain from Ukraine event, which was attended by high-ranking European politicians such as Lithuanian Prime Minister Ingrida Simonyte and Swiss President Alain Berset, Zelenskiy declared, “There is a deficit of air defense—that is no secret.”

Zelenskiy was speaking during Russia’s largest drone attack of the war, an overnight raid on Ukraine with 75 drones. Another air raid siren interrupted the three leaders’ combined press conference.

The president of Ukraine added that while there had been progress, Kyiv still hoped to increase its own production capacity and obtain additional supplies from allies to address its shortfall of air defence.

“As of today, I can’t say details what we are making and where, but there is progress,” he stated.

Following Russia’s withdrawal from a UN-brokered agreement to permit grain ships to pass past its blockade in July, Ukraine, a significant grain producer, began shipping grain through unilateral corridors through the Black Sea.

Present-day grain export routes from Ukraine to the Black Sea all originate from ports in the Odesa area of the country’s south.

When questioned about the truckers’ protests in Poland and Slovakia that have recently obstructed a large portion of Ukraine’s road-based freight supply, Zelenskiy attributed the issue to those nations’ internal politics.

After the talks, he said at a press conference, “I believe that there are difficulties on the border first and foremost because of certain political steps by our neighbours.”

Zelenskiy stated that if Ukraine’s neighbours were given “a bit of time” to resolve the conflict, he was sure it would be resolved.

(With agency inputs)