Ukraine's Foreign Minister Shares His Expectations from Upcoming NATO-Ukraine Council Meeting

Dmytro Kuleba, Ukraine's Foreign Minister, has expressed hope that the allies will promptly announce new commitments to strengthen Ukraine's air defence after the NATO-Ukraine Council meeting on Wednesday, 10 January.

Kuleba in a comment to Politico explained that Kyiv expects the meeting to "expedite critical decisions on further strengthening Ukraine's air defence capabilities. Both in terms of modern systems and their ammunition".

"Ensuring regular supplies of missiles for Patriots, IRIS-T, NASAMS, and other systems is a top priority that must be completed today, not tomorrow," the official stressed.

Kuleba also pointed out that the effectiveness of Ukraine's air defence reduces the likelihood that "a Russian missile or drone will accidentally fly into bordering NATO airspace".

"On all accounts, it makes sense for our allies to mobilise all available forces to strengthen Ukraine's air defences right now," the minister added.

The NATO-Ukraine Council will meet in Brussels on Wednesday, 10 January, in response to the surge in Russian missile attacks that have left dozens dead.

After Russia's large-scale missile attack on 2 January, Kuleba said that he expected Western countries to react and take decisive measures.

NATO declared that it would stand by Ukraine and defend "every inch of Poland" in response to Russia's latest massive missile attacks on targets in Ukraine.