A country worried about the world being distracted by Ukraine; CIA warns Kiev will lose; G7-NATO rushes to act

Lithuania is concerned that Middle East tensions will distract international attention from Ukraine, while Kiev lacks the means to respond to Moscow's military campaign.

Một nước lo thế giới phân tâm với Ukraine, CIA cảnh báo Kiev sẽ thua, G7-NATO gấp rút hành động

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky inspects the latest models of military equipment and weapons, April 13. (Source: Office of the President of Ukraine)

On April 18, Sputnik quoted Lithuanian President Gitanas Nauseda as telling reporters: “There are currently two geopolitical hotspots – the Middle East and Ukraine. I am concerned that we are losing focus on Ukraine.”

Besides, he complained that the European Union (EU) took too long, "several months or longer", from deciding to provide weapons to Kiev to implementing it.

The statement was made in the context that recently, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said that Kiev had "run out of missiles", and continued to call on allies and partners to provide weapons and air defense systems, while Russia stepped up military action.

Regarding this issue, on the same day, Reuters quoted NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg as saying that the military alliance is working to send more air defense systems to Ukraine.

Specifically, NATO is compiling data on the different air defense systems it has, focusing on Patriot systems, and working with allies to ensure that they redeploy some of their systems to Ukraine.

Stoltenberg said the Patriot supply was “absolutely important” because it was the most advanced defense system NATO could rely on. He also mentioned other defense systems that could be provided to Kiev, including the NASAMS national advanced surface-to-air missile system.

The NATO-Ukraine Council will meet on April 19 and President Zelensky is expected to participate in the event online.

Besides NATO, the Group of Seven (G7) of leading industrialized nations is also looking to provide weapons to the Eastern European country in conflict with Russia.

The Italian national news agency ANSA commented that the policy of immediate and broad support for Kiev is one of the topics discussed at the G7 Foreign Ministers' Conference, taking place from April 17-19 on the island of Capri (Italy).

Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba, who plans to attend the conference, asserted, “the only issue on my agenda at the G7 is air defense.”

Also on April 18, Politico quoted CIA Director William Burns predicting: "There is a very real risk that the Ukrainians could be defeated by the end of 2024, or at least that Russian President Vladimir Putin will be in a position to impose the conditions for a political solution."

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