By AFP | 2024-02-27

KYIV -- Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy pressed his Western allies to step up military supplies and vowed victory over Russia, as Kyiv marked two years since Moscow's invasion on February 24.

The Ukrainian leader struck a defiant tone in the capital Kyiv with his troops in the east and south outgunned and outnumbered, and Russia having secured its first territorial gains in almost a year.

Speaking to G7 leaders -- some of whom had travelled to Kyiv -- Zelenskyy said their "vital support" would help his country prevail on the battlefield.

"And you know perfectly well that we need all this in time, and we count on you," he said.

"[Russian President Vladimir] Putin can lose this war," he told the virtual G7 leaders' summit, flanked by European Commission chief Ursula von der Leyen, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and Italy's Giorgia Meloni, who had all travelled to Kyiv.

"Remember that imperial ambitions and revanchism can be defeated only together," Zelenskyy said.

In a statement following the summit, the G7 called for additional cash to help Kyiv close its funding shortfall.

'We will win'

As the war enters its third year, delays in Western aid have led to Ukrainian ammunition shortages, with Moscow trying to press its advantage following the symbolically important capture of Avdiivka.

But Zelenskyy and his top commander on February 24 sought to rouse the country's main military and financial backers.

"We will win," Zelenskyy said earlier during a ceremony at Kyiv's Gostomel airport, which was targeted by Russia on the first day of the all-out assault in 2022.

Ukraine's new military chief, Oleksandr Syrskyi, said he was confident of victory "because light always conquers darkness."

When Putin announced a "special military operation" at dawn on February 24, 2022, many expected victory within days, but Ukraine fought back, forcing his troops into humiliating retreats.

Since then, however, Ukraine has suffered setbacks with the failure of its 2023 counteroffensive.

Russia has invested heavily in its defense industry and drafted hundreds of thousands of soldiers, while Ukraine is short of manpower and running low on Western-supplied ammunition for artillery and air defenses.

NATO chief Jens Stoltenberg urged Ukraine and its allies not to "lose heart," and von der Leyen praised Ukraine's "extraordinary resistance" as she arrived in the Ukrainian capital.

Kyiv signed security agreements with Ottawa and Rome on February 24, with Canada saying it would provide a total of $2.2 billion in financial and military support in 2024.

"We will stand with Ukraine with whatever it takes, for as long as it takes," Canada's Trudeau said.

'War is our life'

Kyiv is facing one of its toughest moments since Russia invaded.

Russia is attacking hard in the east after capturing the heavily fortified town of Avdiivka on February 17.

Troops in the east Ukraine mining town of Pokrovsk sent a clear message to the foreign leaders gathered in Kyiv.

"Give us artillery, drones, counter-battery, shells," said a 31-year-old Ukrainian soldier, who identified himself as Woodie.

"Our infantry, armed with assault rifles and grenades, were facing artillery, aircraft, and tanks," added a 39-year-old serviceman from Kyiv, who has been fighting for two years.

Russia has kept up its barrage of devastating drone and missile attacks on Ukraine's cities.

In Kyiv, the mood was bleak.

"For women of Ukraine, this is our heartache -- for our husbands, for our children, for our fathers," said nutritionist Olga Byrko.

"I would really like this to end as quickly as possible."

Yuriy Pasichnyk, a 38-year-old businessman, told AFP Ukrainians "have learned to live with it... now the war is our life."

Kyiv mayor Vitali Klitschko said air raid sirens had sounded 989 times in the capital over two years of war -- an average of more than once a day.

Ukraine estimates the total number of civilians killed at about 50,000.

Stopping Putin's 'war machine'

Since Russia invaded two years ago, 31,000 Ukrainian troops have been killed, Zelenskyy said February 25, marking the first time he has provided an official estimate of Ukraine's military losses during the conflict.

Leaked US intelligence in December indicated that 315,000 Russian troops had been killed or wounded.

Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu visited Moscow's forces in occupied Ukraine, the army said on February 24, telling them "in terms of the ratio of forces, the advantage is on our side."

Moscow has massively ramped up its arms production and received drones from Iran, while Kyiv says it has confirmed Russia's use of North Korean missiles.

The conflict has thrown Russia into even greater isolation from the West, with the United States and its allies imposing a slew of sanctions.

US President Joe Biden announced yet more sanctions against Russia February 23 to stop Putin's "war machine."

The G7 the next day pledged it would "continue to raise the cost of Russia's war," called on Iran to stop assisting Moscow's invasion and expressed "concern" over the export of goods that can be used for weapons or military equipment from China to Russia.