Ukrainian president orders equipment and expertise to be provided to US in return to diplomatic support against Russia, saying ‘we help to defend from war those who help us’

The United States and its allies in the Middle East are seeking Ukraine’s expertise in countering Iran’s Shahed drones, president Volodymyr Zelenskyy has said.

Various countries, including the US, have approached Ukraine for help in defending against the Iranian drones, Zelenskyy said late on Wednesday. He said he has spoken in recent days to the leaders of the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Bahrain, Jordan and Kuwait about possible cooperation.

Ukrainian assistance in countering Iranian drones will be provided only if it does not weaken Ukraine’s own defences, the Ukrainian president said, and if it adds leverage to Kyiv’s diplomatic efforts to stop the Russian invasion.

MBFC
Archive

  • xenomor@lemmy.world
    link
    fedilink
    English
    arrow-up
    14
    arrow-down
    69
    ·
    edit-2
    1 day ago

    Fuck this guy. I’m entirely in support of Ukraine, but Zelenskyy can take his ‘let’s bomb more schoolchildren, genocide supporting ass’ straight to hell.

    After the US and Israel drive up the price of oil and gas so high that Europe is motivated to purchase more from Russia, I hope that Zelensky enjoys funding the death and destruction of his own people. Goddamn, what an asshole.

    • mcv@lemmy.zip
      link
      fedilink
      English
      arrow-up
      7
      arrow-down
      1
      ·
      16 hours ago

      We can afford to criticise Trump and Netanyahu, Zelensky does not have that luxury. His responsibility is to the defense of Ukraine, and he needs all the support he can get. He can not afford to alienate his potentially biggest ally, as treacherous as it may be. It’s worth some sacrifices to keep him on board, if that saves more Ukrainians.

    • Salamanderwizard@lemmy.world
      link
      fedilink
      English
      arrow-up
      56
      arrow-down
      8
      ·
      1 day ago

      Oh, whatever. The dude is between a rock and a Russian meat grinder. He doesn’t support killing kids, but I’m sure Iran being a Russian friend last I checked. I bet he was more thinking, “Now Iran will be too busy to help Russia out.”

      Not “oh boy I get to kill kids.” Out all the political folks I’ve seen over the past 15 yrs Zelensky has been the only decent cocksucker outta all of em. If there’s any of em whose shit doesn’t totally stink, it’s him. So piss off with that bullshit.

      • ragepaw@lemmy.ca
        link
        fedilink
        English
        arrow-up
        35
        arrow-down
        7
        ·
        1 day ago

        Not to mention there is a huge difference between, “I will help you build defences” and “I will help you bomb kids”.

        • geneva_convenience@lemmy.ml
          link
          fedilink
          English
          arrow-up
          8
          arrow-down
          13
          ·
          edit-2
          23 hours ago

          There is no difference. It’s like giving a bulletproof vest to a school shooter while they are shooting up the school.

          • Railcar8095@lemmy.world
            link
            fedilink
            English
            arrow-up
            7
            arrow-down
            5
            ·
            22 hours ago

            Iran was already giving drones to an active shooter in your analogy. US attack to Iran is an atrocity, but let’s not pretend Iran wasn’t/isn’t actively benefiting from Russia committing atrocities.

            The difference here is provides defensive drones, the other offensive.

            • geneva_convenience@lemmy.ml
              link
              fedilink
              English
              arrow-up
              7
              arrow-down
              5
              ·
              22 hours ago

              Iran is selling to Russia because the US put illegal sanctions on Iran, forcing Iran to sell to Russia.

              But hey, if you’re comparing Ukraine to Iran I guess that moral highground thing is gone.

              • Railcar8095@lemmy.world
                link
                fedilink
                English
                arrow-up
                1
                arrow-down
                5
                ·
                22 hours ago

                https://vger.to/lemmy.world/comment/22509361

                I’ve already replied to your argument before you even sent it. If you cared about moral high ground you would criticize Russia and Iran too, but that goes against the native. They are forced, FORCED, to kill children. And stopping their missiles is evil.

                Good on the name. Geneva only when convenient. Very on brand.

                  • ragepaw@lemmy.ca
                    link
                    fedilink
                    English
                    arrow-up
                    4
                    arrow-down
                    2
                    ·
                    edit-2
                    19 hours ago

                    Thousands of dead protesters, just in 2026?

                    Executing prisoners?

                    Blinding women for protesting the murder of a your woman for the horrible crime of showing her hair?

                    Prisoner amputations?

                    Atrocities going back 3 generations?

                    Why don’t you ask a Kurd what it’s like living in Iran.

                    I’m sure you’ll dismiss all of this because it doesn’t fit your narrative of Iran being a poor victim of aggression. But regardless of the fact that the US attack on Iran was unwarranted, imperialistic and evil, doesn’t mean Iran is an innocent victim.

                    A big thing that seems to be lost these days is that both sides of a conflict can be wrong.

        • xenomor@lemmy.world
          link
          fedilink
          English
          arrow-up
          5
          arrow-down
          29
          ·
          1 day ago

          No, not really. Not during an active war. But you keep rationalizing atrocities like this to yourself.

      • xenomor@lemmy.world
        link
        fedilink
        English
        arrow-up
        9
        arrow-down
        26
        ·
        edit-2
        1 day ago

        Let me get this straight. The guy’s job is to make the case to the world that his country is being victimized by the unwarranted offensive violence of a massive nation for their own self enrichment. So, he provides support for the unwarranted offensive violence of a massive nation for their own self enrichment. I guess all the moralizing about injustice was just marketing and it’s really just my team good, your team bad. If so, no wonder we live in a world where monsters like Putin and trump get to do whatever they want.

        Maybe Iran wouldn’t be so allied with Russia if the US wasn’t so determined to fuck around with it. Ukraine allying with the US is cool and sensible because meat grinder, but Iran allying with Russia is somehow a problem.

        • ragepaw@lemmy.ca
          link
          fedilink
          English
          arrow-up
          13
          arrow-down
          8
          ·
          1 day ago

          Do your parents know you’re posting here? I ask because your understanding of the geopolitical reality of the situation in Ukraine seems to be that of a child.

            • ragepaw@lemmy.ca
              link
              fedilink
              English
              arrow-up
              11
              arrow-down
              6
              ·
              1 day ago

              I made a very substantive point. Let me substantiate it for you.

              Your thoughts on this subject show a very limited, and linear juvenile understanding.

              There is not much I can offer to you, because this is not an ELI5 conversation and you have already demonstrated that nuance would be lost on you.

              • xenomor@lemmy.world
                link
                fedilink
                English
                arrow-up
                5
                arrow-down
                8
                ·
                edit-2
                1 day ago

                I’m going to assume that you believe that launching unprovoked wars, bombing kids, and genociding are really bad. The point that you made was that, while those are really bad, providing defense for the perpetrators of those really bad things, while they actively do them, is somehow okay. I dare you to explain how that can be the case.

                • GuyIncognito@lemmy.ca
                  link
                  fedilink
                  English
                  arrow-up
                  3
                  arrow-down
                  2
                  ·
                  14 hours ago

                  You imbecile, you absolute dolt. When Russia launches an illegal unprovoked full-scale war against it’s neighbour, it’s simple (putin is bad). When America does it, it’s very complicated and nuanced, and who’s to say if war isn’t actually very good in this case? You get to criticize the war in 10 years or so, once everyone decides they they were actually against it.

                • Salamanderwizard@lemmy.world
                  link
                  fedilink
                  English
                  arrow-up
                  6
                  arrow-down
                  4
                  ·
                  edit-2
                  1 day ago

                  Sure, I agree the kids in Iran did not deserve that. Their leader? He was a bad dude, I won’t cry over him. The U.S soldiers who died? Yea that fucking blows.

                  Countries backing up the U.S/Israel war machine? Sure, f.u.b.a.r.

                  But ya know who I can’t be mad at for trying to work a favor out of America, one of the biggest goddamn war machines known to man… Ukraine.

                  You are mad they are stuck in a world where the most powerful militaries in the world are controlled by evil men. China is hard for Taiwan. America is compromised by Russia. And Russia wants to rape Ukraine out of existence.

                  I mean, if you were the leader of Ukraine, what would you do? You’re so wise. You obviously have an answer?

                  How would you stop a military that doesn’t care for it soldiers or people? That will throw them at you and your people without a second thought?

                  All the Ukrainian kids the Russians have taken? How would you stop em? Least we forget how savage the Russians are. I’m pretty sure not all the kids are taken back to Russia. They’re probably raped and left in a hole. So please tell me. If you were the leader of Ukraine what the fuck would you do.

                  So tired of people like you. You can’t think beyond your own eyeballs. The way you speak shows you have the mental fortitude of a wiffle ball bat. Go find a Russian site to lick boots on.

                  • Railcar8095@lemmy.world
                    link
                    fedilink
                    English
                    arrow-up
                    7
                    arrow-down
                    1
                    ·
                    22 hours ago

                    Don’t waste your time. When they are already in favor of the attacker, anything the victim does will seem immoral.

                    Hopefully the next time a missile hits an AI data center most of those accounts will go offline.

                  • xenomor@lemmy.world
                    link
                    fedilink
                    English
                    arrow-up
                    1
                    arrow-down
                    5
                    ·
                    edit-2
                    20 hours ago

                    Y’all are so gross. You seem to have a worldview that believes that anyone who has been a victim at some point gets a kind of hall pass to do awful things. Honestly, you sound like the people that say that Israel gets one free genocide because of the holocaust. It’s your kind of moral relativism that opens to door to monsters like Russia, the US and Israel.