Ukraine’s Zelensky proposes joint aerial shield with allies

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has offered to build a joint aerial defense shield with its allies to protect against threats from Russia. (AFP)

• NATO leaders have said that Russia has been testing the alliance’s readiness and resolve
• A series of airspace incursions that caused alarm on NATO’s eastern flank

WARSAW: Ukraine has offered to build a joint aerial defense shield with its allies to protect against threats from Russia, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said on Monday, after a series of airspace incursions that caused alarm on NATO’s eastern flank.
NATO leaders have said that Russia has been testing the alliance’s readiness and resolve with airspace incursions in Poland and the Baltic states, and Kyiv says its experience in dealing with aerial threats would be valuable.
“Ukraine proposes to Poland and all our partners to build a joint, fully reliable shield against Russian aerial threats,” he said in an address to the Warsaw Security Forum delivered via video link.
“This is possible. Ukraine can counter all kinds of Russian drones and missiles and if we act together in the region we will have enough weapons and production capacity.”
Ukraine has already said that its troops and engineers will train their Polish counterparts on countering drones.
The topic of defense cooperation with Kyiv was high on the agenda as leaders gathered in Warsaw for the annual security forum.
German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius told the conference that “Europe’s and Ukraine’s defense industry must work together more closely and effectively.”
“The European Union must back this by providing a much more flexible regulatory framework for the defense industry in Europe.”
Following the Russian incursions into NATO airspace, countries on the alliance’s eastern flank have agreed on the need for a “drone wall” with advanced detection, tracking and interception capabilities.
However, Pistorius warned that establishing this would not be a quick process.
“We’re not talking about a concept that will be realized within the next three or four years,” he said. “We need to prioritize, and recognize that we require more capabilities and capacities than previously described.”