Vladimir Putin will expand his war in Ukraine by attacking another European country, Volodymyr Zelensky has predicted, blaming Russia for recent drone strikes that he says are an attempt to test NATO's defenses, writes "The Guardian".
In a statement in Kiev after his meeting with Donald Trump at the United Nations in New York, the Ukrainian president said Russia was preparing for a bigger conflict. "Putin will not wait to end his war in Ukraine. He will open another direction. Nobody knows where. He wants this," he said.
The Ukrainian president said the Kremlin was deliberately testing Europe's ability to defend its airspace after drones were spotted in Denmark, Poland and Romania and Russian fighter jets violated Estonian airspace. More drones were spotted Friday night over a Danish military base and Saturday over a Norwegian base.
Zelensky suggested EU governments were struggling to cope with this new and dangerous threat. Earlier this month, Ukraine spotted 92 drones flying towards Poland in a "choreographed" manner. It intercepted most of them. Nineteen crossed Polish territory, where the Poles shot down four.
"I don't compare our forces. We are at war, and they [Poland] are not," he said. Zelensky said representatives from several unnamed countries would travel to Ukraine to receive "practical training" on how to repel Russian air strikes. "We are ready to share our experience," he added.
Zelensky's remarks followed what he described as "very pleasant" talks with Trump on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly. After the meeting, the US president said he believed Ukraine could regain all the territory it had lost since 2022, with the support of Europe and NATO.