Ukraine may not be able to withstand Russian pressure on the front, despite its motivation. The ammunition shortage is unlikely to be resolved this year.
Der Spiegel magazine writes about this in an article titled "The Tired President.".
At the Munich Security Conference, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky “tried to dispel doubts before all the decision-makers in Europe and the United States about whether his country could survive a war against Russia. And yet his desperation cannot be ignored,” Der Spiegel writes.
In Munich, the main topic of discussion among the heads of the intelligence services of various countries was the difficult situation in which the Ukrainian troops find themselves. But “at the beginning of 2023, the West and Kyiv still had high hopes for the prepared Ukrainian counteroffensive. There was talk of returning the territories occupied by Russia, perhaps even Crimea. A year later, it is becoming increasingly difficult for the Ukrainians to hold the front,” the publication writes.
Zelensky and his delegation arrived in Munich with one single mission: to convince the Americans and Europeans to supply Ukraine with more weapons and ammunition, Der Spiegel notes. The president declared an “artificial shortage of weapons,” which has already forced troops to retreat from some places on the front line, including Avdiivka .
“If our commanders can only advance on the corpses of their soldiers, it makes no sense,” he said.
He also said that “the fall of Ukraine would endanger all of Europe.” Next time, Russia will attack the Baltic states or even Poland.
Zelenskyy said that Russia has “a military advantage, namely the complete devaluation of human life.” He also noted that Russia has long-range weapons, while Ukraine has “very few.”.
“If these weapons were finally delivered, Ukraine would be able to regain the territories,” Zelensky said.
Zelensky also highly appreciates the security commitments he signed with the governments in Berlin and Paris. But he reminds us that Ukraine needs further military assistance from the West, the publication writes.
At the same time, at the Munich Conference, Foreign Minister Kuleba appealed to Blinken with a request to provide the Ukrainian Armed Forces with long-range ATACMS missiles, necessary to block the supply routes of the Russian army.
In Munich, when asked about the Taurus with a range of over 500 km, German Chancellor Scholz gave an evasive answer. For Kuleba, this is enough not to lose hope, the publication writes.
The Foreign Minister is counting on the Europeans to intervene if the Americans permanently cut their weapons support. But he urges haste: “Until the European military industry gains momentum, we will pay with our lives.”.
According to the publication, representatives of the special services are discussing whether Kyiv should completely change its military strategy. According to the situation report, the ammunition shortage is not expected to be eliminated this year. Therefore, the Ukrainian army will have to go on the defensive and try to hold the front line without losing too many soldiers.
