Iranian attack on Israel is a ‘wake-up call’ to strengthen America’s allies – POLITICO

Urging international leaders to make “all efforts” to “prevent further escalation” of fighting in the Middle East, the Ukrainian leader said Iran’s “actions threaten the entire region and the world, as do the actions of Russia threatens a wider conflict.

And then he made his point: “Words don’t stop drones or intercept missiles. Only concrete help can achieve this.

Volodymyr Omelyan, Ukraine’s former infrastructure minister, sent a similar message to US Republicans, and in particular to Donald Trump, the former US president and front-runner for this year’s Republican nomination. Trump has promoted the idea that the only way to stop the war in Ukraine is to cede territory to kyiv – a scenario described as a “primitive idea” by Zelensky.

“I hope the Iranian attack on Israel sends a powerful message to Republicans, including Mr. Trump: You can no longer wait and think that these are small, separate regional conflicts happening somewhere in Europe, in the Middle East and Asia,” Omelyan said. in an interview with POLITICO. “China, Russia, Iran and North Korea are constantly attacking the West,” he said.

“You cannot negotiate with people who want to rob and kill you – and the time to educate them is over. Therefore, I hope that next week, Congress will finally approve American aid to Israel and the “Ukraine,” Omelyan said.

He was referring to a major U.S. aid program that has been delayed by partisan bickering in the U.S. Congress, while Western support for Ukraine in general has lost momentum in recent months. On Saturday, Germany finally agreed to send a Patriot air defense system to kyiv to help protect Ukraine from Russian ballistic missiles. But Berlin has not renounced its refusal to supply Taurus cruise missiles.

Western reluctance to provide funding and weapons comes at a time when Moscow’s forces are advancing on the battlefield and Russian President Vladimir Putin, fresh off a lopsided election victory, is jumping at every opportunity to escalate the assault on the Kremlin.