Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has again called on the United States and other allies to "quickly implement" agreements on arms and other supplies to help Ukraine fight a Russian invasion.
While the Western debates continue about the scope and current limitations of military aid to Kiev, Zelensky said in a new video message late yesterday that "it is of crucial importance that all countries, especially the US, really quickly implement the agreements reached with Ukraine."
"It should be felt at the front," Zelenski said. "Every delay with military packages has its negative consequences on the front. Every timely, fast delivery has a positive impact".
As international efforts to supply Ukraine's military continue, NATO has faced increasingly strong calls from some members of the Alliance to lift restrictions on Western-supplied weapons and to supply more advanced weapons.
Ukrainian authorities have repeatedly said the military must be able to launch long-range strikes on Russian territory to fend off an invasion by Russian forces, an argument that has been supported by NATO officials.
British Prime Minister Keir Starmer met with US President Joseph Biden at the White House the day before yesterday to discuss whether to approve Kiev's request to use long-range missiles against targets in Russia, but did not announce any change on the matter.
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Britain is reportedly nearing a decision on whether to allow Ukraine to use Storm Shadow missiles to attack Russian territory, but it needs US approval because the missiles contain parts made by American companies.
US National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan said on September 14 that Biden is "determined to use the four months (remaining in office) to put Ukraine in the best possible position" to prevail on the front.
The aim of the threats made recently by Russian President Vladimir Putin and former President Dmitry Medvedev - who hinted yesterday that a nuclear attack on the Ukrainian capital could turn that city of around two million inhabitants into a "gray dot" on the map - could be to the West is discouraged in terms of supporting Kiev.
Zelensky said later yesterday that he had spoken with the US delegation, members of Congress and "informed (them) of the current situation and prospects."
Ukrainian Prime Minister Denis Shmygalj last week called for a second major international peace summit that he said he hoped could attract at least 150 countries, following a similar event hosted by Switzerland in June.
Meanwhile, in a new wave of Russian attacks on the night of September 14-15, Ukrainian authorities said a married couple had been killed in the southern Odesa region.
Ukraine's military said the country's air defenses shot down 10 of the 14 drones launched by Russia. It is also reported that two Iskander ballistic missiles and an air-guided missile, the latter of which was shot down, targeted Odesa.
Zelensky said Russia fired approximately 30 missiles, more than 800 guided bombs and nearly 300 drones into Ukraine last week.
Calls have also increased among some NATO members for the alliance to do more to defend against Russian missiles and attack drones like those that members Romania and Latvia say have recently violated their airspace amid the ongoing invasion of Ukraine.
Ukraine is not part of NATO, but the alliance said in July that the post-Soviet country was on an "irreversible path" to membership.
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