President Volodymyr Zelensky told Ukraine's parliament on Tuesday that the war had reached a decisive moment, as he urged citizens to remain "resilient" and outlined plans for a huge increase in the production of assault weapons, reports "Reuters".
In an hour-long speech to mark 1,000 days since Russia's full-scale invasion, he said Ukraine would not trade its sovereignty or give up its right to its territories and ruled out new elections until peace is achieved.< /p>
"At this stage of the war, it is decided who will prevail - whether we over the enemy or the enemy over us, Ukrainians... and Europeans, and everyone in the world who wants to live freely and not obey a dictator ."
Zelensky laid out what he called a "sustainability plan" for the country as a domestic response to the "victory plan" he presented to Western allies earlier this fall and said was needed to force Russia to negotiate a fair end to the war.
Although full details of the plan will be revealed later in the year, it includes steps to stabilize the front line, support military innovation and weapons production, and measures to strengthen national unity and cultural identity.
p>"Unity is the first point of our internal sustainability plan," he said.
Zelensky said Ukraine would produce at least 30,000 long-range drones next year, a weapons system Kiev uses to close the gap in strike capabilities with Russia and strike targets deep in its much larger, eastern neighbor.
Ukraine has been looking to boost military industrial production since Russia launched its invasion in February 2022, and Zelensky said 40 foreign arms manufacturers are already working in Ukraine's arms manufacturing sector.
Ukraine also aims to produce at least 3,000 cruise missiles and missile drones, he said, without specifying a time frame.