As the second anniversary of Russiaâs invasion of Ukraine approaches, the latterâs foreign minister says heâll be âmore than happyâ if they can win the war this year.
In an exclusive interview airing Sunday, when asked whether he believes victory is possible this year, Dmytro Kuleba told CTVâs Question Period host Vassy Kapelos he wonât make any predictions.
âI'm not setting any deadlines, because I think they can be misleading, but 2024 will be a year of importance,â Kuleba said.
âIf we can win by the end of the year, I will be more than happy,â he added. âIf it turns out that we have to continue in 2025, we will until we win. It's very simple.â
The interview came just ahead of Canadian Foreign Affairs Minister Melanie Jolyâs trip to Ukraine this week, during which she met with Kuleba, and announced an initiative to âreturn Ukrainian children and advance negotiations on long-term security commitments.â
Kuleba in his interview also discussed Ukraineâs need for more support, on the heels of a deal among European Union member countries to provide Ukraine with a new 50-billion-euro (C$81 billion) aid package.
U.S. Congress, however, remains at a standstill over whether to approve more aid money as well. Kuleba said he hopes American lawmakers will follow the EUâs lead and increase their support for Ukraine.
Kuleba said if the U.S. does not approve its new aid package, Ukraine will keep fighting, because it has to, but that there will be more casualties.
âThe price of fighting will be much higher for us, because it will be far more difficult for us to continue defending our land, and human costs will increase for us dramatically,â he said.
No updated timeline on NASAMS delivery
Kuleba also reiterated earlier statements heâd made that he anticipates a âbattle for the skyâ as the importance of air warfare will increase this year.
Early last year, Canada announced it would donate a $406-million surface-to-air missile defence system (NASAMS) to Ukraine. But as The Canadian Press reported last month, the equipment still hasnât been delivered, and itâs unclear when it will be.
One of the two companies involved in building the NASAPS said it does not have a contract for the donation, The Canadian Press also reported.
Kuleba said Ukraine âwelcomed the announcement from Canadaâ last year, but has not been given an updated timeline for the NASAMS delivery, which he said he hopes to be as soon as possible, âbecause Russia continues to terrorize Ukraine from the air.â
âI just call on everyone involved in it to act with without a single delay,â he said.
When asked about the impact of those delays, Kuleba said it is âmore undefended to Ukrainian cities, (and) more Russian missiles and drones falling on (them).â
âAs soon as an opportunity was provided, Canada transferred funds to the United States for the purchase of the NASAMs in March of 2023,â wrote Defence Minister Bill Blair spokesperson Diana Ebadi in an emailed statement to ŰÎŰ´ŤĂ˝. âAt every step of the way, Canada has done everything possible to expedite the delivery of this system.â
âNASAMs are critically important to Ukraineâs ongoing fight against Russian aggression and Minister Blair believes that this system needs to be delivered as quickly as possible,â she added.
Ebadi said that Blair is in âregular contactâ with U.S. Ambassador to Canada David Cohen on the issue, and has âreceived assurancesâ that U.S. officials are working on delivering on its end as soon as possible.
To date, Canada has sent 300 air-defence missiles to Ukraine, while itâs also committed more than $9.5 billion in aid, and $2.4 billion in military aid â including Leopard 2 battle tanks, small arms, M777 howitzers and drone cameras â Ebadi wrote.
With files from CTVâs Question Period Senior Producer Stephanie Ha