Zelenskyy Says 400 Iranian Drones Used By Russia, Blames Israel for Iran’s Support: According to a report from European Pravda, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy claimed this week that Russia has used an estimated 400 kamikaze drones against Ukraine in recent weeks. Zelenskyy made the comments during a briefing with the president of Guinea-Bissau on Wednesday.
Also addressing new cooperation between Ukraine and Israel, Zelenskyy said that Israeli intelligence can reveal that Russia has “used over 400 Iranian-made drones against Ukraine.”
“We are at the beginning of our cooperation with Israel, and this is a positive move on the part of Israel. I am grateful for this,” Zelenskyy said, adding that he is counting on additional support from the country.
Is Israel Backing Ukraine?
Zelenskyy’s suggestion that Ukraine is just at the “beginning” of its cooperation with Israel may have led some to believe that Tel Aviv has chosen to side with Ukraine in the conflict, but that would be untrue.
Israel recently denied Ukraine’s request for Iron Dome air defense systems to be sent to Ukraine, and Israeli officials instead offered to provide support in creating an early warning system that alerts civilians, the military, and the government to incoming missile and drone strikes.
Israel offered last Wednesday to develop the system, and Israeli Minister of Defense Benny Gantz reportedly asked Kyiv to “share information about their needs for air defense alerts.”
On Monday, Zelenskyy criticized Israel for refusing to go further in its support for Ukraine. The Ukrainian president said that Iran was likely counting on Russia to help with its nuclear program in exchange for missiles and drones, and accused Israel of being responsible for Iran’s decision to supply Russia with the weapons.
“This is the decision of your governments … not to annoy the Kremlin, which was adopted a long time ago,” Zelensky said. “If we had immediately secured our skies when faced with a missile and drone threat, Russia would not even have a motive now to go to Iran and offer it something in exchange for assistance in terror.”
On Wednesday, however, the Ukrainian president struck a more thankful tone and expressed his desire to see Israel provide additional support in the future.
On Monday, Gantz spoke to Ukrainian Minister of Defense Oleksii Reznikov to express Israel’s support of the Ukrainian people and the West, though he did not agree to provide military support.
Shahed-136. Image Credit: Screenshot.
Shahed-136. Image Credit: Social Media.
The chances of Israel going further remain slim, given the country’s dependence on Russia for military assistance in Syria and the two countries’ longstanding diplomatic relationship.
Jack Buckby is a British author, counter-extremism researcher, and journalist based in New York. Reporting on the U.K., Europe, and the U.S., he works to analyze and understand left-wing and right-wing radicalization, and reports on Western governments’ approaches to the pressing issues of today. His books and research papers explore these themes and propose pragmatic solutions to our increasingly polarized society.
