Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has asked Western allies to provide around $30 billion by the end of the year to support Ukraine’s weapons production and stop Russia from gaining more ground. Speaking in Kyiv, Zelensky said Ukraine needs this money to boost its arms industry, which is currently not working at full capacity. He explained that this amount is just an estimate, but it is necessary to reach Ukraine’s military goals.
With U.S. support declining under President Donald Trump and peace talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin making no progress, Ukraine is turning more toward its resources. However, due to the damage the war has caused to its economy, Ukraine does not have enough funds to increase weapons production on its own.
Zelensky also mentioned that recent Russian missile and drone attacks have been some of the worst since the war began three years ago. He stressed that funding is now the most critical issue because the billions of dollars in aid given since Russia’s full invasion in 2022 are running out, and there’s still no sign of the war ending soon.
To help fund its defense, Ukraine is looking at the frozen assets of Russia. Zelensky plans to ask the Group of Seven (G-7) countries—made up of the U.S., UK, Germany, France, Italy, Canada, and Japan—to make use of these frozen assets. The G-7 had previously proposed a $56.5 billion loan based on profits from about $300 billion in Russian assets held under sanctions.
Zelensky plans to attend a G-7 meeting in Canada next month to push this idea. He believes these Russian assets can be used in several ways to help Ukraine’s war efforts. One key area of focus is military drones. Ukraine currently runs about 100 drone missions per day but wants to increase that number to between 300 and 500. For this, Ukraine needs money, not more factories, according to Zelensky.
He also warned that Russia has gathered over 50,000 troops near Ukraine’s Sumy region and may try to move 10 kilometers into the area to create what they call a “buffer zone.” Russia is also still aiming to take full control of Donetsk and Luhansk in eastern Ukraine and is trying to expand its attacks into the central Dnipropetrovsk region.
Talks between Ukraine and Russia have not led to any results so far. Russia has rejected a 30-day ceasefire and continues its military operations. Russia’s Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said a new round of talks will be announced soon and repeated Russia’s demand that Ukraine remain neutral. He also said Russia does not want the next talks to be held in the Vatican, even though it was supported by Ukraine and the U.S. Instead, Russia prefers Belarus, a country that has supported Russia’s invasion. Zelenskiy rejected this, saying Belarus is not a neutral place and that it is not serious for Russia to suggest it.
Zelensky added that Ukraine still hopes the U.S. will place more sanctions on Russia to force them into peace talks. He is ready to meet both the U.S. and Russian leaders to try and end the war.
