Zelensky Travels to Lithuania for Talks on Ukraine's NATO and EU Membership

Volodymyr Zelensky, the President of Ukraine, traveled to Lithuania on Wednesday, January 10, to discuss NATO and EU membership, cooperation in drone production, and coordination to garner European support for Ukraine. Mr. Zelensky expressed gratitude to Lithuania for its unwavering support for Ukraine since 2014, especially at this time. The office of the Lithuanian President announced that the leaders of the two countries would also meet with Ukrainian refugees living in Lithuania, in addition to discussing the war in Ukraine. The Ukrainian President stated that he would also visit Estonia and Latvia. Amid daily Russian attacks, Ukraine is focusing on garnering global support to strengthen its air defense. On Tuesday, January 9, the United States, most EU member states, and over 20 other countries condemned North Korea's missile sales to Russia and the use of these missiles by the Russian military in attacks on Ukraine in a joint statement. The statement noted that these attacks occurred on December 30 and January 2, and they will closely monitor what Russia provides to North Korea in exchange for the missiles. The statement said, 'The transfer of these weapons adds to the suffering of the Ukrainian people, supports Russia's aggressive war, and undermines the global treaty on the non-proliferation of nuclear weapons.' Russia attacked Ukraine with about 300 missiles and over 200 drones at the turn of the New Year and in the early days of 2024. Russia has also used Iranian drones in its attacks on Ukraine. U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken previously described the development and proliferation of missile and drone production technology by the Islamic Republic as 'one of the greatest challenges to international peace and security.' There has been widespread global condemnation; at least 48 countries condemned Russia's use of North Korean ballistic missiles in its attack on Ukraine. There has been widespread power outages in Ukraine; the U.S. is considering 'providing advanced equipment' to Ukraine. Russia attacked Ukraine overnight with 28 drones and three missiles. Ukraine claims that Russia is using 'non-Russian' missiles, pointing fingers at the Islamic Republic and North Korea.