NATO countries have delivered more than 98 per cent of the combat vehicles promised to Ukraine amid its war with Russia, the military alliance's chief said on Thursday, giving Kyiv a bigger punch as it appears poised to launch a counteroffensive.
“Along with more than 1,550 armoured vehicles, 230 tanks and other equipment, member nations have sent Ukraine vast amounts of ammunition and also trained and equipped more than nine new Ukrainian brigades,” NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said. More than 30,000 troops are estimated to make up the new brigades.
"This will put Ukraine in a strong position to continue to retake occupied territory,” Stoltenberg told reporters in Brussels.
His comments came a day after Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said he and Chinese leader Xi Jinping had a long and meaningful phone call in their first known contact since Russia's full-scale invasion more than a year ago.
Though Zelenskyy said he was encouraged by Wednesday's call and Western officials welcomed Xi's move, the development didn't appear to bring about any immediate shift in peace prospects.
Russia and Ukraine are far apart in their terms for peace, and Beijing while looking to position itself as a global diplomatic power has refused to criticise Moscow's invasion. The Chinese government sees Russia as a diplomatic ally in opposing US influence in global affairs, and Xi visited Moscow last month.
Stoltenberg said the 31 NATO allies were committed to shoring up Ukraine's military, adding that taking back land occupied by the Kremlin's forces would give Kyiv a stronger negotiating position if peace talks occur.
The Kremlin gave a lukewarm response to the call between Xi and Zelenskyy. Asked if the call could help end the fighting, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters: “We are ready to welcome anything that could lead to the termination of the conflict in Ukraine and the achievement of all the goals set by Russia.”
Peskov said the conversation between the Chinese and Ukrainian leaders was the sovereign business of those countries and the issue of their bilateral dialogue.
With battlefield positions in Ukraine largely static as a war of attrition took hold in recent months, Russian forces have kept up their bombardment of Ukrainian areas, often hitting apartment buildings and other civilian infrastructure.
At least seven civilians were killed and 33 were injured between Wednesday and Thursday, Ukraine's presidential office said. They included one person killed and 23 wounded, including a child, when four Kalibr cruise missiles hit the southern city of Mykolaiv, official said.