Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyi on Wednesday asked NATO allies for more weapons and air defenses to see his country through another winter of war as it prepares for a wave of Russian attacks on power plants and other infrastructure, Reuters reported.

Zelenskyi made his first visit to NATO headquarters since the start of the Russian invasion at a time when disputes in the US Congress threaten to end aid to Kyiv and the world’s attention is focused on yet another crisis unfolding in Israel.

He bluntly compared Russian President Vladimir Putin to the Palestinian Islamist group Hamas and said Western military aid was crucial to putting Moscow in trouble.

Zelenskyy at NATO: “We must win the winter battle with terror”

“Winter air defense is a significant part of the answer to the question of when this war will end and whether it will end fairly for Ukraine,” Zelenskyy said.

“We must win the winter battle against terror, and we can win it,” he added at a meeting of defense ministers from NATO and about 20 other countries that provide military aid to Kiev at a US-led forum known as the Contact Group for the Defense of Ukraine.

Reaffirming the West’s commitment to support Ukraine as long as necessary, US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin announced a new $200 million defense package for Ukraine, including anti-aircraft munitions and weapons to counter Russian drones.

Stoltenberg: Putin is “again preparing to use winter as a weapon of war”

NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said that Putin is “once again preparing to use winter as a weapon of war” by attacking Ukraine’s energy infrastructure.

“We have to prevent that, with more advanced and greater air defense capabilities, we can make a big difference,” Stoltenberg said.

Austin and U.S. Air Force Gen. Charles K. Brown, the new top U.S. military officer, want to reassure NATO allies and Ukraine that Washington will continue to support Kiev, even as aid has been blocked by infighting in the U.S. Congress.

But they will also have to convince allies that Washington can support Ukraine by helping Israel deal with attacks by Hamas militants.

Zelensky presented the Russian invasion and Hamas attacks as two sides of the same coin. “Terrorists like Putin or Hamas seek to hold free and democratic countries hostage and want power,” he said.

“(Russia) still has enough resources to provoke conflicts and turn them into large-scale tragedies, and this is happening in the Sahel. And it can happen even more painfully in Israel and the Middle East,” he added