Ukraine needs years of support against Vladimir Putin’s invaders, NATO chief warns – World News

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has vowed not to resist Russian invaders dispatched by Vladimir Putin, saying: “We will not give the South away to anyone, we will give back everything that is ours.”

UKRAINE will need years of support in the war against Vladimir Putin’s invaders, the NATO chief has warned.

Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said the West must increase arms supplies to liberate the Donbass region from Russian control.

He said the costs of the conflict, including energy and food increases, are high, but the price of letting Moscow triumph is even higher.

He said: “We have to be prepared that it could take years. We must not let up in supporting Ukraine.”

During a trip to the heavily bombed Black Sea city of Mykolaiv, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said: “We will not give the south away to anyone, we will give back everything that is ours.”

British defense chiefs say four months of brutal fighting in Ukraine appears to be taking a toll on troop morale on both sides. Russian soldiers desert and disobey orders, even staging armed clashes with superiors.

A Defense Ministry spokesman said: “Russian morale most likely remains particularly low”.

He added that many Russian soldiers of all ranks “are probably still confused about the aims of the war.”

Prime Minister Boris Johnson said: “Everything will depend on whether Ukraine can strengthen its ability to defend its soil faster than Russia can renew its attacking capability.”

There are growing concerns over British medic John Harding, 59, who has not been seen since he was captured by pro-Russian forces in Mariupol last month.

British prisoners fighting with him, Aiden Aslin, 28, and Shaun Pinner, 48, have since been sentenced to death.