Zelenskyy secures air defence assistance after meeting Norwegian PM

President Volodymyr Zelenskyy spoke with Norwegian Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre about bolstering Ukraine's air defenses, after which he stated that "Norway is ready to help."

Zelenskyy thanked Støre for expressing condolences over the tragic consequences of Russian large-scale strikes on 2 June, News.Az reports, citing European Pravda.

"We discussed air defense supplies – Norway is ready to help, thank you!" Zelenskyy wrote on X, without providing further details.

Zelenskyy added that work is also underway to ensure that Europe develops its own capabilities to intercept ballistic missiles.

"We must fully accomplish this shared task and provide Europe with its own system strong enough to protect against ballistic threats. When Europe is protected against ballistic missiles, it will boost confidence not just for someone alone on our continent, but truly for all Europeans. We are also preparing for meetings in the near future – there will be special formats for our work," he added.

In early May, Norway allocated about US$303 million for the purchase of US weapons for Ukraine under NATO's Prioritised Ukraine Requirements List (PURL) programme.

Recently, Ukrainian Defence Minister Mykhailo Fedorov revealed that more than 90% of Ukraine's means of countering ballistic missiles are supplied through PURL.

Ukraine's Ministry of Defence has also stated that partner countries' contributions to PURL are currently sufficient to continue supplying Ukraine.

Meanwhile, Zelenskyy wrote a letter to US President Donald Trump and members of Congress last week, highlighting shortages of air defence systems and noting that the pace of deliveries through PURL is failing to keep up with actual needs.

News.Az 

By Ulviyya Salmanli