Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said he expects the Russian army to expand its offensive in the north and east of Ukraine with the aim of capturing Kharkiv.
"They launched an operation that can consist of several waves, and this is the first wave," Zelenski said in an interview with Agence France-Presse.
Zelensky said that, despite Russian advances in the Kharkiv region in recent days, the situation for Ukrainian forces is better than a week ago, when Kremlin forces suddenly crossed the border.
According to the Ukrainian president, Russia wants to attack Kharkiv, the country's second largest city.
Zelensky also said that, when it comes to air defense systems, Ukraine today has "25 percent of what it needs to defend Ukraine."
Ukraine would need 120 to 130 F-16 or other fighter jets so that Russia does not have air superiority, Zelensky said.
"We are in an absurd situation where the West is afraid that Russia will lose the war, and at the same time it does not want Ukraine to lose," the Ukrainian president believes.
Russia has made the biggest territorial progress since the end of 2022, with about 257 square kilometers won only in the Kharkiv region, according to AFP.
At least three people were killed and 28 were wounded in the bombing of Kharkiv yesterday afternoon, Mayor Igor Terehov said.
The President of Russia, Vladimir Putin, said yesterday that the goal of the Russian offensive in the Kharkiv region in Ukraine is to create a buffer zone, but not to conquer the capital of the region of the same name.
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