‘No Peace for Occupiers’ – Zelensky, Starmer Agree to Make More Drones

July 11 ------ In his nightly address, President Volodymyr Zelensky promised the country that the wheels are in motion to acquire more drones and air defenses, on a day when he held a phone conversation with the British prime minister to discuss financing for more domestic production, and the US promised that more weapons were on the way.

Zelensky said that he met with his defense staff to discuss the need to significantly increase the use of drones of all types on the front line. “There were reports on the front line, primarily the Pokrovsk and Novopavlivka fronts, as well as the Orikhiv front, Sumy Oblast, and our operations in Russian territory in the border areas of Kursk and Belgorod oblasts,” he said. “There will be no peace for the occupiers there. “We had a very detailed conversation about drones: we need to significantly increase the use of all the types of drones that help us on the front line. Drones and technological solutions will help us to deter Russian assaults and ensure our active operations even more. I am grateful to everyone who is working in this area and developing appropriate solutions.”

Zelensky said the meeting focused on air-defense systems – air defense missiles, as well as drones – and that Ukraine’s partners are on board for helping in this regard. “We expect to formally document the agreements in the coming weeks,” he said. “Step by step, we are closing the funding gap for the production of drones and drone interceptors and filling Ukrainian production lines with specific orders.”

In a social media post earlier in the day, Zelensky confirmed that he had held a phone conversation with British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, during which they discussed financial aid from the UK in order to produce more drones in Ukraine. He added that the two leaders game-planned the upcoming Ukraine Recover Conference, or “Coalition of the Willing” meeting, to take place in Rome on July 10 and 11. “I spoke with UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer. We coordinated our joint diplomatic efforts and discussed expectations for the upcoming meeting of the Coalition of the Willing, which will take place in Rome in just a few days. We are working to ensure the decisions made are as strong as possible,” the president said.

He added that the Starmer expressed his condolences for he victims of the recent massive Russian attacks on Ukrainian cities that injured more than 80 people across the country on Sunday. “I thanked him for supporting our people. We also discussed additional funding to be provided this month for Ukraine’s domestic drone production, primarily interceptor drones. We agreed to work on strengthening other formats of cooperation with key partners as well, particularly the Ramstein format. There must be more protection for human lives,” Zelensky said.

Source: kyivpost.com