On Thursday, April 4, during an official visit to Brussels, Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba visited NATO headquarters, where he congratulated the Alliance on its 75th anniversary.
During a press briefing with international media representatives, the Ukrainian Foreign Minister urged allies to immediately provide Ukraine with additional Patriot missile defense systems to counter Russian aerial threats.
"It is impossible to understand why allies cannot find additional batteries to deliver them to the places where ballistic missiles are fired daily. In March alone, 94 ballistic missiles were launched across Ukraine. On average, that's 3 per day. Nowhere else in the world does this happen," the Minister noted.
Dmytro Kuleba reminded that Russia's aerial terror does not cease for a moment, and therefore, it is important to stop it as soon as possible.
"Just tonight, about 20 'Shahed' drones attacked Kharkiv. As of now, 4 people have been killed. The attack was carried out in the most insidious way - the second drone flew behind the first and killed those who came to help the victims after the first drone strike," the Minister pointed out.
The head of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs emphasized that providing Ukraine with additional Patriot systems will not only protect the airspace of our country but also make NATO airspace safer.
"We need more 'Patriot' systems in Ukraine because it will protect not only Ukrainian airspace but also NATO airspace from Russian ballistic missiles," the Minister stressed.
Responding to questions from journalists about the possible unlocking of U.S. financial assistance to Ukraine and the position of U.S. House Speaker Mike Johnson, Dmytro Kuleba noted that President Zelensky and Speaker Johnson recently had a thorough conversation on this matter. According to him, the recent public comments by Speaker Johnson on this issue are optimistic. Ukraine expects real steps from its allies.
The Foreign Minister also expressed confidence that American assistance will come in any case.
In response to journalists' questions about possible evidence of ballistic missile supplies to Russia from other countries, including China or Iran, Dmytro Kuleba stated that Ukraine currently does not possess evidence confirming Russia's receipt of ballistic missiles from these countries.