Ukraine seeks more air defence systems from West after New Year barrage

Ukraine urged allies to supply more air defence systems after it saw in 2023 amid more deadly missile and drone strikes, and President Volodymyr Zelenskiy told his people they had “changed the world” during more than 300 days of full-scale war with Russia.

In Moscow, Russian president Vladimir Putin hailed his military and claimed his invasion – which has killed tens of thousands of people and displaced millions – was actually a defensive move to thwart an aggressive West that wants to “weaken and divide Russia.”

Air raid sirens howled across Ukraine as people prepared as best they could for New Year’s night, even as long blackouts cut supplies of light, heat and sometimes water following waves of Russian missile and drone attacks on the national grid.

At least two people were killed and about 50 injured in rocket strikes across Ukraine, including in Kyiv, where a hotel and a residential building were hit.

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The Ukrainian air force said 45 Iranian-made “kamikaze” drones were shot down across the country on New Year’s night, as were 12 of 20 cruise missiles fired by Russia on the afternoon of New Year’s Eve.

Kyiv pleaded for months with western allies to provide modern air defence systems, and says it is making good use of weapons that are now being supplied, including the advanced Nasams rockets that are believed to have entered service in Ukraine in November.

“We see that the skies really had dependable protection. I want to note the help of our partners – this should be a kind of signal for them, because our servicemen hardly had time to reload the Nasams. They were firing them like artillery,” Ukrainian air force spokesman Yuriy Ihnat said on Sunday of the New Year air attacks.

“Probably no one else has this experience of using air defence – having to reload the system during battle and destroy airborne targets… We have the rockets, but we need more of the air defence systems themselves,” he added.

“It’s also another signal to partners as to how skilfully and effectively our specialists can use this foreign-made military hardware in combat conditions, having gone through training on it only a few weeks ago.”

Air raid sirens sounded in Kyiv shortly after Mr Zelenskiy addressed the nation just before midnight on New Year’s Eve, at the end of a year in which he said “Ukraine changed the world. And the world discovered Ukraine”.

“We were told to surrender. We chose to counterattack…Is there anything that can scare us? No. Is there anyone who can stop us? No. Because we are all together,” he added.

“It’s impossible to forget. And it’s impossible to forgive,” he said of Russia’s invasion. “But it’s possible to win.”

Russia appeared to expect an easy victory when it invaded its much smaller neighbour on February 24th, but amid heavy losses it now claims less to be purging supposed “Nazis” from Ukraine as waging a defensive war against proxy Nato forces.

“The West lied to us about peace while preparing for aggression, and today, they no longer hesitate to openly admit it and to cynically use Ukraine and its people as a means to weaken and divide Russia. We have never allowed anyone to do this and we will not allow it now,” Mr Putin said in his New Year address, against a backdrop of Russians in uniform.

“This is what we are fighting for today, protecting our people in our historical territories… Russia’s future is what matters most. Defending our motherland is the sacred duty we owe to our ancestors and descendants. Moral and historical truth is on our side.”