Zelensky is counting on more Western aid in January and February

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said on Saturday that he expects to sign a number of new Western defense packages for Ukraine this month and next.

“We’re preparing for new agreements with partners, strong bilateral agreements,” Zelensky added in his video evening speech.

He continued, “January and February are supposed to bring results from that… There are already specific dates when new, robust documents can be expected”.

After Russia launched its large-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, Kiev’s Western allies united in providing unprecedented military aid to help Zelensky defend his country.

But with the war now in its third year, there has been little change along the front line in the past 12 months and opposition to more aid, money and equipment in the United States has been growing in the past few months.

Zelensky didn’t mention the countries with which he hopes to conclude agreements.

The Ukrainian president spent weeks on an international diplomatic tour in an attempt to secure more political and military support.

He has often reiterated that Russia’s increased air strikes over the winter and Moscow’s exhausting if slow offensive in eastern Ukraine highlight the need to further strengthen Kiev’s air and ground defenses.

Earlier this month, Britain, one of Kiev’s strongest supporters, said it would increase its support for Ukraine in the next fiscal year to 2.5 billion pounds ($3.19 billion).

French President Emmanuel Macron said on Tuesday that he would visit Ukraine in February to finalize a bilateral security guarantees agreement under which Paris would deliver more advanced weapons to Kiev, including long-range cruise missiles.