Ukrainian foreign minister reveals his wish list: 'weapons, weapons, and weapons'
Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba said Sunday during an appearance on NBC's Meet the Press that his wish list "only has three items on it. It's weapons, weapons, and weapons."
Host Chuck Todd began the interview by asking Kuleba, who joined the show from Kyiv, about British Prime Minister Boris Johnson's "symbolic walk" through the center of Kyiv with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and about the U.K.'s pledge to send more weapons to Ukraine.
"Well, I would say it's not only about symbolism. It's also about sending a message of confidence in Ukraine, in Ukrainian leadership, and in the Ukrainian Army that is capable of defending the capital. And it's true to say that Ukraine won the battle for Kyiv," Kuleba said. "And the United Kingdom has been taking the lead in working with us on the issues which we need the most, such as armored vehicles or shore-to-vessel weapons to contain the Black Sea fleet of the Russian Federation."
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Kuleba added that he believes Ukraine's military has proven itself to be "one of the strongest armies in the world, maybe the second strongest after the United States ... in terms of battle experience and capacity to fight."
Todd also asked about Russia's missile attack on the Kramatorsk train station, which killed at least 52 civilians on Friday. "It begs the question," Todd said, misusing the phrase, "I know you want peace, the president has talked about peace. Can you sit down and make peace with the Russians?"
"It's extremely difficult to even think about sitting down with people who commit or excuse or find excuses for all these atrocities and war crimes," Kuleba responded. "But I understand one thing: If sitting down with the Russians will help me to prevent at least one massacre like in Bucha, or at least another attack ... like in Kramatorsk, I have to take that opportunity,"
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Grayson Quay was the weekend editor at TheWeek.com. His writing has also been published in National Review, the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, Modern Age, The American Conservative, The Spectator World, and other outlets. Grayson earned his M.A. from Georgetown University in 2019.
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