I wish you health, fellow Ukrainians!
Today, the most important thing is gratitude to all mothers. Thank you for your care – and often, we must also thank you for your courage; always, for your devotion. In Ukraine, Mother’s Day has truly become a national holiday. And we hope that today, all Ukrainian sons and daughters who have this opportunity told their mothers exactly this: thank you. And that those whose parents, sadly, are no longer with us, remembered their mothers as well. A very important day. It is important that we do not forget to show this attention.
It is encouraging that, as of now, there have been no massive attacks today – no missile strikes or air attacks. But in frontline areas and in communities near the front, there has been no quiet. The Russians continue their assaults in the areas that are key to them. There has been shelling, and there have been drone strikes of various kinds along the frontline. Over the course of yesterday and today, there have already been more than 150 assault actions, more than 100 instances of shelling, and nearly ten thousand kamikaze drone strikes. In other words, the Russian army is not observing any silence on the front and is not even particularly trying to. All of our Ukrainian units are responding in kind and defending our positions exactly as necessary. As for our long-range sanctions, yesterday and today Ukraine refrained from long-range actions in response to the absence of massive Russian attacks. Going forward, we will respond in kind. And if the Russians decide to return to full-scale warfare, our sanctions for this will be immediate and tangible. Distance is already becoming less and less important – we have demonstrated that through our long-range capabilities. Ukraine has always acted clearly and honestly in this regard.
Our contacts with the American side regarding guarantees are also ongoing – guarantees for the implementation of the arrangements reached recently and announced by the President of the United States. The prisoner exchange – 1,000 for 1,000 – is being prepared and must take place. The Americans assumed responsibility for these guarantees. Ukraine’s Coordination Headquarters has handed over the lists for one thousand POWs to the Russian side. There was American mediation in reaching this arrangement on the exchange, and accordingly, we expect the American side to play an active role in ensuring it’s fulfilled.
And a few more points. Our warriors on the frontline, in virtually all combat brigades, are talking about long-range artillery calibre – long-range artillery shells. Kill zones are expanding, and the use of drones of all types remains a priority. But the warriors themselves say: artillery is needed. Specifically long-range artillery. We now have a new and very strong agreement with Norway: we will begin joint production of long-range 155 mm shells – exactly the kind of ammunition we need. I thank Norway for this much-needed step. We are already preparing our diplomatic work in the week ahead. There will be meetings – today, President of Finland Alexander Stubb and I discussed them and coordinated our positions. There will be formats that are effective. Ukraine needs support every single day. Air defense – no matter what happens, we are preparing to defend ourselves. We are providing our warriors with everything they need.
There is also a separate track of discussions with the American side focused specifically on security issues. And we are certainly working to ensure that our diplomacy has every strong position it needs together with each partner capable of strengthening Ukraine.
Now Putin himself says that he is finally ready for real meetings. We pushed him a little toward this, and we have long been ready for such meetings ourselves – now a format must be found. This war must be ended, and security must be guaranteed reliably. We thank everyone who is helping!
Glory to Ukraine!