​President Volodymyr Zelenskyi said on Wednesday that Ukraine will soon launch a counteroffensive against Russian forces and that he is confident that the West will eventually provide Kyiv with modern military aircraft, Reuters reports.

Speaking at a press conference in Finland, NATO’s newest member, Zelensky said one of the reasons for his trip to Helsinki was his country’s desire to become a full member of the military alliance.

The President of Ukraine cited examples of military successes, which were later accompanied by new military aid to Ukraine.

“That’s why I’m sure we’ll have planes soon. Because soon we will be on the offensive, and after that, I’m sure, we’ll be given planes. I would prefer it to be the other way around, because it would be easier for us, but that’s the way it is, and we are grateful for everything,” the Ukrainian president said.

“We need them. We really need them,” Zelenskyy said, referring to the planes of the Western allies.

Finland’s President Sauli Niinisto has said that Finland cannot donate American-made Hornet fighter jets because they are old and few other European countries have similar models, so it does not make sense to create a maintenance network.

“But we like your plane, just so you know, Mr. President,” Zelensky joked.

Zelensky’s visit to Finland to support his case for joining NATO

The Ukrainian president’s visit to Finland, one of the few trips he has made abroad since Ukraine was seized by Russia last year, was announced only after his arrival amid heightened security in the Finnish capital.

He reiterated his desire for Ukraine to join NATO, the Western military alliance that Finland joined last month as its 31st member.

“Today we need security guarantees while we are not in NATO,” Zelenskyy said.

“But in any case, our goal is to have full membership in the alliance. That’s one of the reasons I’m here today. The second reason, or to be honest, the priority is to strengthen our army… I don’t want to go into details if you don’t mind.”

Zelensky held bilateral talks with Niinisto before the start of the regional summit, which was attended by the prime ministers of Sweden, Norway, Denmark and Iceland.

Zelenskyi was met with applause and cheers from the Finns

Hundreds of people gathered in the center of the Finnish capital to see Zelensky’s arrival, applauding him as he appeared in front of the presidential palace.

Zelenskyi’s spokesman said that the Ukrainian government expects the outcome of the summit to be a joint statement.

On April 4, the Kremlin said Finland’s entry into NATO was a dangerous historic mistake that would weaken security in the wider region and force Moscow to take countermeasures.

Supporting this view, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said at a briefing on Wednesday: “As we monitor NATO’s plans for Finland, we confirm that Russia will be forced to take retaliatory measures, both military and otherwise, to reduce threats to our national safety “

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