Welcoming French Fighter Jet Promises, President Zelensky: Can Putin Win War? No

JAKARTA - Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said on Friday Russian President Vladimir Putin could not win the war, praising the promise of a fighter jet to be delivered by France.

Speaking before the French National Assembly, President Zelensky hopes to see French warplanes supplied in Ukraine's skies, as soon as President Emmanuel Macron says France plans to provide Mirage 2000-5 fighter jets.

"I'm sure one day Ukraine will see the same jets in our sky as we saw in the Normandy sky yesterday," President Zelensky told French lawmakers, referring to the 80th anniversary of the D-Day in Normandy.

"Your fighter jet, the brilliant fighter jet under the command of a Ukrainian pilot, will prove that Europe is stronger, stronger than a crime that dares to threaten it," President Zelensky praised the 2000 Dassault Mirage fighter jet.

President Macron did not say how much of the Mirage made by Dassault would be provided by France. But said Paris would ship planes and train pilots by the end of the year.

"Can Putin win the war? No, because we have no right to lose," President Zelensky told lawmakers.

"Can this war end up on the line now? No, because there is no line for crime, not 80 years ago, not now," he said.

President Zelensky has long expressed his frustration over the length of time Western allies need to make important decisions regarding military support for Ukraine in its war against Russian invasion forces.

Meanwhile, Ukrainian military leaders admit the battlefield situation on the front lines of the eastern region has deteriorated. The two-year war has drained Ukraine's ammunition and power and failed counter-attacks last year have lowered morale.