KIEV (dpa-AFX) - Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyi has complained of an acute shortage of ammunition for artillery systems and air defense. "Today we have one (artillery) shell against ten (Russian) ones. Can we hold out like this?" asked the head of state in an interview published on Tuesday by the US broadcaster PBS. It was necessary to achieve at least a balanced ratio of artillery in order to continue resisting Russian pressure. The president warned of the consequences of a lack of US military aid. "I will tell you frankly, without this aid we will have no chance of victory," emphasized Selenskyj with regard to the support package that has been blocked for months by Republican members of Congress.

At the same time, he lamented the lack of anti-aircraft missiles. During the recent attack on a thermal power plant a good 30 kilometers south of the capital Kiev, only seven of eleven Russian missiles were intercepted, according to Selenskyj. "We ran out of all the missiles that were protecting the Trypillya power plant," said the president. According to the authorities, the power plant, which is important for supplying electricity to the Kiev region and has a capacity of over 1,800 megawatts, was completely destroyed in the attack.

Ukraine has been fending off a Russian invasion for over two years with Western help./ast/DP/mis