President Volodymyr Zelensky has acknowledged battlefield progress has been “slower than desired”, weeks into Ukraine’s military offensive to recapture areas occupied by Russia.
Ukraine says its counter-offensive has reclaimed eight villages so far in the southern region of Zaporizhzhia and Donetsk to the east.
President Zelensky said the military push was not going easily because 200,000 sq km of Ukrainian territory had been mined by Russian forces.
He reinforced the need for Ukraine to be given security guarantees from NATO but said ultimately the goal was membership of the defensive alliance.
Nato’s secretary general made clear this week that no plan was on the table to issue an invitation to Ukraine at next month’s summit in Lithuania.
Ukraine’s economy shrank by 29.2% in 2022 and earlier this year the World Bank estimated the cost of reconstruction and recovery at $411bn.
The Ukrainian leader said the support he needed was not just for recovery but for transformation as well
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