Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky acknowledged today that Russia, with its air superiority, is stalling the Ukrainian counteroffensive, with Zelensky expressing dissatisfaction with the slowdown in Western military aid and the delays in sanctions against Moscow.

“Since we don’t have air power and Russia does, they are blocking us from the air. They are stopping our counterattack,” Zelensky said from Kiev, condemning “processes that are becoming more complicated and slower, regarding sanctions or arms supplies” from the West.

“The war is slowing down, we recognize this fact,” he said.

“When our partners say ‘what is the next step in the counter-offensive; my answer is that today, our steps are probably faster than the new packages of sanctions’ targeting Russia,” the Ukrainian president said.

Kiev regularly complains about the slow pace of imposing retaliatory measures aimed at slowing down the Russian war effort.

Zelensky stressed once again that if the West delivered long-range munitions more quickly, which would make it possible to strike Russian defensive positions, rear positions, and the Russian supply chain, the Ukrainian military would also move faster.

“A specific weapon has a specific impact. The more powerful and long-range it is, the faster the counterattack will proceed,” he said.

The West has been delivering ammunition of this type to Ukraine drip-by-drip, fearing that Kiev will use it, despite its commitments, to bomb Russian territories, which could lead to an escalation of the war.

Ukraine has also been complaining for months about the slow pace of negotiations for the delivery of F-16 fighter jets, while the country has a small and ageing fleet of aircraft dating back to the Soviet era.

After months of procrastination, several dozen of these US fighters will be delivered by European countries, but it will take months for them to reach the battlefield, especially given the time it takes to train pilots.

The Ukrainian counter-offensive launched in June in eastern and southern Ukraine is having difficulty advancing because of Russian air superiority and a complex network of defensive lines, particularly in southern Ukraine, consisting of trenches, anti-personnel mines, and anti-tank mines.