Yuri Sak: Ukraine needs more air defence systems after deadly attack on Kharkiv

As Russia continues its offensive in northeastern Ukraine, killing 18 people in an attack so far, Ukrainian President Zelensky has secured a promise from Spain of additional anti-aircraft missiles to help fend off the approximately 3,000 bombs he says Russia fires at Ukraine every month.

Yuriy Sak, Advisor to the Ukrainian Minister for Strategic Industries, joined WTOP’s Anne Kramer, Kyle Cooper and JJ Green to discuss the recent attack in Kharkiv and the latest developments in the war that has been going on for over two years.

Listen to the interview or read the full transcript below.

Yuriy Sak joins WTOP to discuss the recent attack on Kharkiv, Ukraine.

JJ Green: Yuriy, I was wondering if you could tell us a little about the recent attack that took place last night in Kharkiv. That’s the second largest city in Ukraine. What’s the latest on that?

Yuri Sak: JJ, well, first of all, thank you very much. It’s an honor to be back here in the studio. And when the attack happened, I was actually already in the U.S., because as you can imagine, it takes a very long time to travel anywhere from Ukraine these days. And I saw in the U.S…. people with families, you know, going to supermarkets to buy groceries and things. And that’s exactly what happened in Kharkiv, the second largest Ukrainian city. On a weekend, families go to this huge supermarket in the middle of Kharkiv. You know, to renovate their homes, to buy groceries. And these genocidal terrorists, these, you know, animals, they attack them with an S300 missile.

And we all saw it, the whole country saw it and was deeply shocked by the security camera footage, because you can actually see people walking one moment and the next moment you can’t see anything because there is only rubble, dust and flames from the explosion. That’s why we tell our partners every day that we need more air defense systems, because even after more than two years of this war, civilians are still dying and we are still witnessing these terrorist attacks every day.

Anne Kramer: Yuriy, I want to ask you something – you just touched on it briefly – but given the aid package that took so long to get through Congress and get aid to Ukraine, I wonder if you can engage our listeners and give them some perspective. There are a lot of moms, a lot of dads driving their kids around right now, a lot of people celebrating what Memorial Day means to us on this day and our fallen soldiers here in our country. But why should they be personally interested in what’s happening in Ukraine?

Yuri Sak: I was here in Washington, DC, last year and I visited Arlington Memorial Cemetery. And I saw with my own eyes that this country knows like no other the value of fighting for freedom, for values. And that’s exactly why I believe it’s not just our fight. It’s our shared fight insofar as we stand up for freedom now, that Kyiv and Ukraine are the center of the free world. And it’s in the national interest of this country to continue to support Ukraine because, God forbid, if things don’t go according to plan, if we follow the next countries like the Baltic states, they will be attacked. And then U.S. troops will have to put their foot on the ground again because of the NATO agreement and defend. They will have to go to this war. We, as a coalition of three nations, still have the opportunity to end this war where it is now in Ukraine. Let’s not let it slip away.

Kyle Cooper: Yuriy, you just described this horrific attack. And all the families and people that were there. What is the morale of the Ukrainian people? We see President Zelensky, his morale seems good. He’s holding out. What are people saying? It’s been a long, long war.

Yuri Sak: We are very, very, very angry at these terrorists, and every attack that they think will break our will only makes us stronger and more determined. Because I don’t think there is anyone in Ukraine right now who doesn’t have a close relative, friend or classmate fighting in the war or who has been wounded or killed. So we are a nation at war. We know that our survival is at stake, we will continue. And we hope that our partners and our strategic allies like the United States of America will continue to stand with us. And I want to take this opportunity to thank every American listening to your show in the car right now, all the children. There will come a day when all of you will be proud that you stood with us in these difficult times, with a nation at war. And we will never, ever forget that. I say that to you on your Memorial Day.

Anne Kramer: Yuriy, thank you very much. We appreciate you coming and speaking with us. JJ, thank you as well. WTOP national security correspondent JJ ​​Green and special guests Yuriy Sak, adviser to the Ukrainian defense minister. Thank you again.

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