Ukraine must pursue asymmetric warfare as Russia’s military budget still twice as large, Zelenskyy says

Zelenskyy made the remarks at a news conference following a Coalition of the Willing meeting in Kyiv. The president said he believed Russia’s war must become painful for Russians themselves so that Russian society would pressure the Kremlin to enter negotiations.

“If we want to bring this war back to Russia and make it truly painful for them — for the Russian people — so that their society feels it and pressures [Russian dictator Vladimir] Putin, then we need a comparable number of drones, not the same amount of money, because they currently have twice as much money,” Zelenskyy said.

“They spend even more — about EUR340 billion [$396 billion] on the war.”

Ukraine spends EUR140 billion on the war, according to Zelenskyy. He said the country therefore must focus on the number of long-range strikes it can carry out.

Zelenskyy also said Ukraine had received new military and energy support packages following the Coalition of the Willing meeting. He said strengthening air defenses remained the top priority.

In his Independence Day message delivered earlier the same day, Zelenskyy said Ukrainian Flamingo cruise missiles must become mass-produced “birds” that habitually “winter” in Russia.