Flurry of Leaders Arrive in Ukraine for Aid Talks

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Facts

• British Defense Minister Grant Shapps met his Ukrainian counterpart Rustem Umerov — both in their first month of new roles — as well as Ukrainian Pres. Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Thursday. Umerov said that the pair discussed the ongoing battlefield situation as well as air defense, artillery, and anti-drone systems.¹
• Meanwhile, a statement from Zelenskyy's office quoted the Ukrainian leader as saying: 'On behalf of the whole nation, I thank you for everything you are doing for us. We are grateful for your help — military, financial, humanitarian. We greatly appreciate that we can rely on you.'¹
• The talks were proceeded by an unannounced visit from NATO chief Jens Stoltenberg. In a joint press conference with Zelenskyy, Stoltenberg said that NATO has framework contracts in place for €2.4B ($2.53B) of key ammunition for Ukraine, including €1B ($1.05B) in firm orders.²
• French Defenсe Minister Sébastien Lecornu also landed in Kyiv for talks on Thursday alongside French Ambassador Etienne de Poncins. Shortly after landing, the French officials visited the Wall of Remembrance for fallen Ukrainian soldiers.³
• The visits come as Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuelba announced on Thursday that the inaugural Defense Industries Forum will be held in Kyiv in the next few days. He said the meeting would bring together representatives of arms manufacturers from across the world with the aim of strengthening Ukraine's military production capabilities.⁴
• The exact time and location of the conference was not announced — likely as a security precaution following Russia's bombing of a drone manufacturers summit in Chernihiv last month.⁵

Sources: ¹Reuters (a), ²Reuters (b), ³Euromaidan press, ⁴Interfax and ⁵Ukrainska pravda.

Narratives

• Pro-Ukraine narrative, as provided by Euromaidan press. While Ukraine is grateful for the West's supplies of weapons, these deliveries have been slow and often short of what the country needs to achieve battlefield breakthroughs to successfully push Russia out of all its territory. The West must not fall for Russia's fear-mongering and give Ukraine the weapons it needs to successfully achieve its aims.
• Pro-Russia narrative, as provided by Tass. The West's ever-increasing arms deliveries to Ukraine are continually blurring the lines between indirect and direct involvement in the conflict. Not only does this drag out the conflict, making it more painful and agonizing for Ukraine, but also increases the prospects of a serious escalation.

Predictions