Russia Selenskyj: "October is the time for decisions"
Following the presentation of his so-called victory plan in the USA, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyi wants to discuss the resulting steps at the upcoming Ukraine summit in Ramstein, Rhineland-Palatinate.
29.09.2024, 05:47
SDA
"I have presented the victory plan and we have agreed that we will soon discuss our next steps with our allies in Germany in the Ramstein format. October is the time for decisions," Selenskyj said in his evening video address, which was published on the X platform.
US President Joe Biden is travelling to Germany in mid-October and plans to hold a meeting of the so-called Ukraine Contact Group, which is led by the USA, at the level of heads of state and government on 12 October. Zelensky is also expected to attend. Around 50 states belong to the Ukraine Contact Group, with Germany also taking part. The defense ministers of the member states normally take part in the regular talks. The USA and Germany are Ukraine's largest arms suppliers.
During his talks in Washington, Zelensky presented a "victory plan" he had devised. According to media reports, it is a paper consisting of four to five points that read less like a plan and more like another of the lists of requests regularly submitted by Kiev to its Western partners - including the delivery of specific weapons and an expansion of Western financial aid.
Klingbeil insists on prudent action
Selenskyj is demanding permission from the allies to use long-range weapons supplied by them against positions on Russian territory. German Chancellor Olaf Scholz has rejected the delivery of German cruise missiles to Ukraine and recently spoke out against further relaxing the rules for the use of weapons supplied by Germany by the Ukrainian armed forces.
With regard to Selenskyj's demand, SPD leader Lars Klingbeil insists on "prudent action". "Chancellor Olaf Scholz is in close contact with our Western partners, such as the USA," he told the German Press Agency. "We accept it if others decide otherwise. But for Germany, the decision is clear."
Kiev hopes its partners will give in
There was still no clear explanation of Zelensky's main concern during his visit to the USA, namely permission to use the long-range weapons supplied by the West against targets on Russian territory. "The Russians would be the first to know about this," said Zelensky's press spokesman Serhiy Nikiforov on Ukrainian television. "And then there will be a public statement." Although there is still no "clear solution", Kiev is still hoping that its partners will give in.
Russia's Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov took a different view at a press conference following his UN appearance in New York. He saw the silence of the West as a sign "that they have listened carefully to the statements of Russian President Vladimir Putin on the nuclear doctrine". However, he could not judge how these countries would then understand it.
The Kremlin leader had once again threatened to use nuclear weapons following an adjustment to this doctrine. Accordingly, any conventional attack on Russia supported by a nuclear power would be regarded as a joint attack by these countries.
Zelensky thanks Biden
In his video address, Zelensky thanked President Biden for the latest military aid package and further support totaling almost eight billion dollars. US Vice President Kamala Harris, who wants to replace Biden at the head of the government after the election in November, also promised Zelenskyi support and indirectly warned against an election victory for her Republican opponent Donald Trump.
Selensky also said that the meetings with Harris and Trump were important for Ukraine. However, he refrained from making his own assessment of the talks and tried to maintain neutrality. Trump has repeatedly indicated that he is not a supporter of the massive US support for Kiev's defensive war against Russia.
Selenskyj said that his country fully supports the strategy of building peace through strength. The unity of the allies is important to stop Russia and this war and to guarantee a real, honest peace, he said. "The peace that Ukraine wants more than anyone else in the world and that will surely come."
Heavy fighting continues in eastern Ukraine
Heavy fighting continued between the warring parties in eastern Ukraine. The General Staff in Kiev announced in its evening situation report that 66 armed clashes of varying intensity had been recorded on the various sections of the front during the course of the day.
Almost a third of these clashes took place in the Pokrovsk region on the edge of the Donbass. Russian troops had made 24 attempts to break through the Ukrainian defenses there. The attacks were repelled. The information could not be independently verified.
Russian drone kills Supreme Court judge
A judge of the Supreme Court of Ukraine has been killed in a Russian drone attack. 61-year-old Leonid Lobojko was killed when a drone hit his private car in a suburb of the eastern Ukrainian city of Kharkiv, regional military administrator Oleh Synjehubov reported on Telegram. Lobojko was dead on the spot.
Three women who were in the car were seriously injured. Lobojko was traveling in the region to distribute humanitarian aid. The Supreme Court confirmed the death of its member on Facebook and expressed its condolences to the family.
