Have the article read by OpenAI (Beta). Please note that AI translations may take some time to process.London (dpa) – German Chancellor Olaf Scholz on Thursday rejected Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky‘s call for Western allies to shoot down Russian missiles and drones over Ukrainian territory.
At a European Political Community (EPC) summit in Blenheim Palace near Oxford, Scholz said such a move – as well as Zelensky’s request for the lifting of restrictions on Kiev’s use of Western weapons on Russian territory – was “out of the question.”
The fourth EPC summit since its establishment in 2022 brought together 43 heads of state and government, including all member states of the European Union as well as Ukraine. The EU was represented by European Council President Charles Michel. The only European countries not taking part are Russia and Belarus.
Zelensky had earlier asked Western powers to protect Ukrainian airspace, as they did Israel’s when Iran launched a massive missile and drone attack in April. “There must be a collective will to shoot them down just as there was with the Iranian missiles and drones,” Zelensky said.
The Ukrainian president also demanded greater freedom to use Western weapons on Russian territory, noting their role in halting a Russian advance in Ukraine’s north-eastern Kharkiv region in May.
At the summit, Ukraine signed security agreements with the Czech Republic and Slovenia, valid for 10 years. Kiev has already concluded such agreements with almost two dozen states, including Germany, and the EU. (18 July)
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