Volodymyr Zelensky softened his rhetoric towards the North Atlantic Alliance compared to his previous speeches and focused on explaining to the allies that their attitude towards Russia was wrong.
This was the subject of the President's speech at the NATO summit on March 24.
First of all, President Zelensky appealed to members of the Alliance for military assistance. As EuroPravda reported, he called on the Alliance to provide 1% of its weapons to the Ukrainian army, and also reproached NATO members for still not providing the most critical types of weapons - air defense systems, aircraft, armored vehicles.
"I don't blame NATO. It's not your fault. It's not your missiles and bombs that are destroying our cities - there were phosphorus bombs today that killed Ukrainian children... I just want you to know that the Alliance can still prevent the deaths of Ukrainians from Russian strikes by providing us with all the weapons we need," he said in particular.
It is worth noting that before, the president used to address NATO with completely different rhetoric, in particular, accusations that the Alliance was responsible for the deaths of Ukrainians. This then caused criticism also in Ukraine.
Now Zelensky stressed: he understands that the Alliance is not obliged to protect us as it does its members - but he believes that the Alliance itself still needs Ukraine's protection.
He also rebuked NATO for the fact that its general decisions are weaker than those of individual countries.
"Yes, we are not in the Alliance. And I don't make any complaints. But Ukrainians have never thought that the Alliance and the Alliance states are completely different. That in matters of life and death you can be a force apart, but together you cannot. That NATO may also be afraid of Russia's actions."
Zelensky also warned NATO members that if Russia succeeds in the Ukrainian war, it is certain to launch an offensive against Alliance members.
"I'm sure you already understand that Russia is not thinking of stopping in Ukraine. It wants to go further," he stressed, adding that the common defense of Ukraine can prevent this.
As a side note, the secretary general of the Alliance confirmed on Thursday that NATO has no plans to close the skies over Ukraine with allied air forces. And although there is a NATO decision to deliver air defense systems to Ukraine from Slovakia, it is not known whether this delivery is complete. At the same time, Congress urged Biden to provide Ukraine with air defense systems and fighter jets.
