KYIV, July 15 – Russia often shells underground gas storage facilities (UGS) in western Ukraine, this poses a threat to neighboring countries to be left without gas during the heating season, it is in the interests of these countries to help Ukraine with their own air defense forces in protecting these gas storage facilities, shooting down Russian missiles over Ukrainian territory, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy believes.

“There are countries that are skeptics in NATO, in principle, towards us, and so it is very important that these countries use this gas, which is in our gas storage facility. And, it seems to me that this skepticism of countries should decrease, because if we don’t protect our gas storage facilities, then these countries, our closest neighbors, will be left without gas during the heating season,” Zelenskyy said at a press conference in Kyiv on Monday.