Russia-Ukraine war latest: Zelensky urges EU and NATO to back his ‘victory plan’ against Putin’s forces

Volodymyr Zelensky has attended two key meetings in Brussels as he seeks to persuade EU officials and NATO members to support his “successful plan” to end Russia’s war.

The Ukrainian president will make his case to NATO defense ministers at a summit of EU leaders on Thursday, marking the first meeting of the Western military alliance since the Ukrainian president unveiled a five-point plan.

Mr Zelensky outlined the five-point plan in Ukraine’s parliament on Wednesday, but did not reveal the secret elements, which were privately presented to key allies, including the US.

Reaction at NATO was muted, however, with Secretary-General Mark Rutte saying only that he and allies would “take care” of it. He did not discuss when Ukraine would join the world’s largest military alliance — one of the plan’s five key points — insisting it would eventually become a member.

“There are so many aspects to this plan and so many political and military issues that we have to really hammer with the Ukrainians to understand what’s behind it, to see what we can do and what we can’t do,” Mr Rutte said at NATO headquarters in Brussels.

UK Defense Secretary John Healy has said that NATO must increase its support for Ukraine in the coming months to pressure Russia and ensure Ukraine wins the war.

Speaking ahead of a NATO meeting in Brussels, Mr Healy told reporters: “In the coming weeks and months we must do everything we can to increase our support for Ukraine, to put more pressure on Russia to ensure Ukraine prevails. Europe’s security starts in Ukraine.

“We owe it to them to stand with them,” he said.

Latvia supports Volodymyr Zelenskiy’s “victory plan,” according to Andris Sprouts, the country’s defense minister.

Speaking to reporters ahead of today’s NATO meeting, Mr Sprouts said the Western military alliance’s air policing over the Baltic states should be upgraded to a security role.

NATO chief Mark Rutte says Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky must start talks with Russia from a position of strength.

“We are in this for the long haul, if necessary,” Mr Rutte said. “We want to be in a position where Ukraine, from a strong position, can start talks with Russia, but until that moment comes, he can count on continued support.”

Mr Rutte, a former prime minister of the Netherlands, took over as NATO chief earlier this month, taking over from Norwegian politician Jens Stoltenberg, who has held the post since 2014.

Lithuanian President Kitanas Nausėda has warned that it is a “bad moment” to start talks between Ukraine and Russia because Moscow feels it has the upper hand.

“Now he thinks he’s winning and pushing Ukraine into a corner. It’s the worst time to start negotiations because he feels Russia is the stronger side,” Mr Nauseda told reporters.

The Baltic nation has been a staunch ally of Ukraine since Russia’s 2022 invasion, which it fears could be a future target.

Estonia looks forward to Ukraine’s NATO membership move and next steps, its Defense Minister Hanno Pevkur said.

“Estonia has always said that NATO membership is the only real security guarantee for Ukraine,” Mr Pevkur told reporters ahead of a meeting with his counterparts from NATO countries in Brussels.

Volodymyr Zelensky said he discussed long-range weapons, the delivery of aid packages and the implementation of his “victory plan” during a phone call with US President Joe Biden.

“We talked about long-range weapons, about the Ramstein meeting in a few weeks. We also talked about how our teams will work on the points of the victory plan,” Mr. Zelensky said.

Ukraine’s military said it shot down 22 of 56 Russian drones in an overnight attack.

The Air Force said it lost track of 27 drones that fell into Ukrainian territory following active electronic warfare operations, and two drones went to Belarus.

It recorded five hits to infrastructure in areas near the front line during the offensive.

All five key points of the “Victory Plan” unveiled by Volodymyr Zelensky yesterday include calls for some form of action by Ukraine’s international allies.

Zelensky has made it clear he believes this is necessary if he is to achieve his goal of ending the war after 2025, the Institute for War Studies said.

Simplified, the five points of the plan are:

1. An immediate call to join NATO

2. Continued Western support and assistance, including equipping Ukrainian forces

3. Supporting Ukraine’s ability to use Western-supplied weapons to attack military targets in Russia and increasing intelligence sharing with Ukraine

4. Western and Ukrainian non-nuclear strategic deterrence against Russia

5. Western investment in Ukraine’s strategic economic development; and the promise that Ukrainian forces would “replace” some of the Western military groups currently stationed in Europe after the end of the war.

Ukraine is seeking an invitation to join NATO before Joe Biden leaves the White House, a senior Ukrainian diplomat said.

It would be a fitting way to end the 81-year-old presidency, Ukraine argues, and a strong “political signal”.

Speaking in an interview at the Ukrainian delegation to NATO, Natalia Kalibarenko, the Western military alliance’s Kiev ambassador, said: “We sincerely believe that this can be part of the legacy. [the] The current US administration.”

With next month’s US presidential election likely to have a significant impact on its approach to supporting Ukraine’s war against Russia, it remains unclear how Donald Trump will handle the conflict.

Russia says Ukraine’s accession to NATO is a justification for the brutal war it has waged since Putin’s forces invaded in February 2022.

But Kalibharenko says the call will give Russia a “final verdict” and that “they can’t use this topic to raise the stakes.”