Zelenskyy says modern combat aircraft needed to defend against Russian strikes

By Burc Eruygur

ISTANBUL (AA) - Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said his country needs modern combat aircraft to defend against Russian strikes.

“We need the aviation component of air defense - modern combat aircraft - to protect the entire territory of our country from Russian terror. Air defense is complete only when it is backed by aviation,” Zelenskyy said on Monday evening.

Zelenskyy further said that Ukrainian pilots are already doing a good job, together with anti-aircraft gunners and specialists of the air force, but they will be able to fully establish aerial superiority when “the aviation taboo in relations with our partners is lifted.”

Zelenskyy’s comments came as two people were killed in a drone attack in the western Ukrainian city of Khmelnytskyi on Monday.

A Ukrainian military statement said Russia attacked Ukraine from the north with 14 drones, claiming that 11 of them were destroyed by air defense systems.

Now in its second year, the Russia-Ukraine war has so far killed more than 8,100 civilians, with nearly 13,500 more wounded, according to the latest UN figures.

After securing US-built Abrams and German-made Leopard tanks, Ukraine has turned its attention to shipments of modern fighter jets.