I wish you health, fellow Ukrainians!
Today I am already in Kyiv. I spoke with Commander-in-Chief Syrskyi: he reported on all frontline directions and our Kursk operation.
The Pokrovsk direction – well done. Every soldier, every sergeant, every officer who ensures the defense of our positions.
In general, the Donetsk and Zaporizhzhia directions are facing very difficult conditions, fierce enemy actions. But our units' resilience is crucial. It is our resilience that makes all the difference.
As for the Kursk operation: there were attempts by Russia to push back our positions. But we are holding the defined lines.
This week, we added new arms agreements for Ukraine, and not just supplies – it is also production. Every foreign visit is always a conversation about investment in Ukraine's industrial sector.
Our industrial capacity allows us to produce far more drones, more shells, and military equipment than our country's financial capabilities allow. But at the same time, there are many partners who, for objective reasons, cannot help with arms supplies – they do not have their own weapons, but they can help us with financing. Also, some partners have special technologies that can be used in Ukraine right now – in defense, in our active actions. There is leadership among countries that brings together others in the world for our joint production work. I thank every partner of Ukraine who has already invested in our Ukraine's defense industry. Thanks to such investments we have already significantly increased our production, especially of drones.
Now, in France, we have discussed a new model of cooperation – the creation of joint Ukrainian-French production facilities in our state. This is being elaborated at the level of the Defense Ministries. The Danish model already works, when the governments of partner countries attract investments in arms production, and we consider the new French model as an opportunity to attract investments specifically to establish new production facilities. We count on this result for Ukraine, and it is a personal task for the Minister of Defense and the Ministry of Strategic Industries – to ensure that all our agreements are implemented.
Today I want to commend the warriors of our National Guard of Ukraine who are fighting alongside everyone else on the frontline and who have proven themselves especially well these weeks. The 12th special purposes brigade of the National Guard, and in particular Senior Soldiers Roman Zdebskyi and Vladyslav Rusenko. The 15th brigade of the operational assignment – Junior Sergeant Bohdan Petrenko and Sergeants Yurii Kolosovskyi and Yevhen Kuznetsov. Also, the 1st presidential brigade – Junior Sergeant Vladyslav Skorobahach and Lieutenant Colonel Volodymyr Zhdanov. As well as the warriors of the special forces of the 2nd and 4th detachments of the Omega Special Purpose Center of the National Guard, who are fighting in the Kharkiv and our Donetsk regions. We cannot reveal their names now: the guys have particularly sensitive tasks, special work against the enemy. And the result is exactly what Ukraine needs. Thank you, guys!
And today I also want to acknowledge the Ukrainian military chaplains. The spiritual fathers of different confessions who serve so that our warriors have spiritual support and appropriate advice, bright hope. It is very important that more representatives of churches and religious communities, all those who work for the spiritual independence of Ukraine, join the military service for Ukraine, be closer to the guys at the front – primarily in combat brigades, exactly where they are needed most. I thank every military chaplain who serves in this way – with our Ukrainian warriors.
I thank everyone who makes Ukraine strong! And only in strong positions will we achieve true peace, just peace.
Glory to Ukraine!