Zelensky blasts ‘empty shells’ among Ukraine support coalitions
Ukrainian leader Vladimir Zelensky has questioned the effectiveness of international coalitions supporting Kiev, warning that some remain “empty shells” amid mounting difficulties with Western military and financial assistance.
In his daily video address on Sunday evening, Zelensky expressed hope that the Coalition of the Willing, a group of countries working to provide security guarantees for Ukraine in the event of a peace agreement, would help forge “a truly strong and united European position” for talks with Russia.
“We are also preparing a review of the work of the existing coalitions supporting Ukraine – which ones are truly fulfilling their tasks and which remain empty shells, to be honest. We will work to give them substance,” he added.
Zelensky did not specify which coalitions he considered ineffective. In August, he ordered an audit of international initiatives supporting Ukraine, singling out a European-backed coalition tasked with building civilian shelters and demanding tangible results rather than commitments on paper.
Western military assistance programs facing funding shortfalls include the Czech-led ammunition initiative and NATO’s Prioritized Ukraine Requirements List (PURL), a mechanism through which European allies and Canada finance purchases of US weapons for Kiev. Some US arms shipments have also been delayed, while Poland announced on Friday that it would suspend contributions to PURL, citing its budget deficit and high domestic defense spending.
Zelensky also renewed his call for more US-made Patriot and NASAMS air defense missiles ahead of next week’s Ramstein meeting of Ukraine’s Western backers. Deliveries have faced delays amid shortages of interceptors and competing US military demands stemming from the war against Iran.
In a report to Congress this month, US inspectors general warned that insufficient funding for operations supporting Ukraine had forced US Army Europe and Africa (USAREUR-AF) to divert resources from other activities, negatively affecting its readiness, training and operational capabilities.
Ukraine has also encountered difficulties securing long-term financial assistance from the EU. Hungary, the Czech Republic, Slovakia and Bulgaria have opposed German Chancellor Friedrich Merz’s push to make approval of the bloc’s next seven-year budget conditional on all member states contributing to additional funding for Kiev.
Russia has accused European countries of seeking to undermine US-mediated peace talks and has demanded an end to Western military assistance to Ukraine as part of any settlement.
