A Russian-backed separatist leader in Ukraine claims he’s being inundated with requests from museums to send them the burned-out wrecks of Western tanks sent to Kyiv for its battle against the Kremlin.
Denis Pushilin, the head of the self-proclaimed Donetsk People’s Republic, spoke about the request for hardware destroyed by Russian forces in a TV appearance, according to a state media report Wednesday. He claimed that German-made Leopard tanks are particularly sought after.
“We have a lot of orders—everyone wants Leopards, other equipment for museums,” Pushilin said, according to the TASS news agency. “But I say: ‘Guys, let me move [Ukrainian troops] back. Because right now this equipment is in the gray zone.’” He added that the Western equipment “needs to be shown, needs to be demonstrated,” but that such displays would have to wait for “a little later.”
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Pushilin also said Russian forces in Donetsk had seen a large uptick in new equipment from Western countries on the battlefield. “At the very peak of the attacks—if we include tanks, including Leopards, armored vehicles, pickups, and everything else—the guys say they have not seen such numbers at all,” he said.
Ukraine’s allies, including the United States, have recently announced new shipments of weapons, vehicles, and other aid to support Kyiv in its counteroffensive against Moscow’s forces. Ukrainian military commanders have claimed some victories by capturing eight villages in Donetsk and the southern region of Zaporizhzhia, but the fightback has not been as immediately successful as some had hoped.
On Wednesday, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky told the BBC that progress has been “slower than desired” and said the counteroffensive had been hampered by Russian troops mining a 77,220-square-mile area of Ukraine.
“Some people believe this is a Hollywood movie and expect results now. It’s not,” he said. “What’s at stake is people’s lives.” Zelensky added: “Whatever some might want, including attempts to pressure us, with all due respect, we will advance on the battlefield the way we deem best.”
He also renewed his calls for Ukraine to be supplied with U.S.-made F-16 fighter jets and played down the threat of nuclear war despite Russia’s recent announcement that it had moved tactical nukes into Belarus. Zelensky said he didn’t believe Russian President Vladimir Putin would use such weapons “because he is scared for his life, he loves it a lot.” “But there is no way I could say for sure, especially about a person with no ties to reality who in the 21st century launched a full-scale war against their neighbor,” he added.
Zelensky was also asked to comment on Putin’s comment last week accusing Zelensky of being a disgrace to the Jewish people. “It’s like he doesn’t fully understand his words,” the Ukrainian leader said. “Apologies, but it’s like he is the second king of antisemitism after Hitler.”
