Politico Names Zelensky's Five Main Asks From His European Tour

Joining NATO and air defense as a priority.

Journalists named the five main requests that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky is making to international partners during his European tour. This is reported in an article by Politico.

The publication presented Zelensky's five key asks, assessing their chances of success on a scale from 1 to 5, where 1 means the lowest. They attributed the lowest chances to the first request — regarding inviting Ukraine to NATO.

The second important request of the president was to ensure assistance to allied air defense systems to protect the Ukrainian skies, in particular, drawing parallels with support for Israel. The main focus is on Poland and Romania, which could shoot down Russian missiles and drones entering border areas.

The publication assesses the chances of success of this request as low, since the allies fear direct involvement in the conflict with Russia.

Zelensky also calls for continuing to strengthen air defense systems. “Despite encouraging statements in the summer, deliveries have stalled — but promises continue,” the article says.

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz recently announced that the new IRIS-T systems will be included in a €1.4 billion military aid package that Germany has prepared jointly with Denmark, Norway, and the Netherlands. This package is planned to be provided to Ukraine by the end of 2024.

The third major request from Ukraine is a request to allow the use of Western weapons to strike targets in Russia. However, as journalists note, the chances of this request being successful are minimal, since, despite support from the new NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte, there are concerns that such actions could lead to an escalation of the war and even the use of nuclear weapons by Russia.

The fourth one is said to be a request to provide Ukraine with German long-range Taurus missiles, which the country has been actively requesting for a long time. However, after Olaf Scholz's categorical refusal, mentions of these missiles have almost disappeared from public discussions. Politico believes that the Chancellor's position on this issue will probably remain unchanged.

President Zelensky's fifth request is to attract investment to the Ukrainian defense sector, which will not only allow Ukraine to independently produce the necessary weapons, but will also stimulate economic growth. Progress has already been made in cooperation with the German arms company Rheinmetall, the Norwegian company Nammo and the Swedish Saab on joint production. In addition, countries such as Denmark, Canada and Lithuania have begun placing orders with Ukrainian defense companies.

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