Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said Ukraine's stepped-up strikes deep inside Russia will enable Kyiv to negotiate the end of the war on equal footing with Moscow, Reuters reported on June 3. The comments came after a Ukrainian barrage hit an oil terminal in St. Petersburg and a naval base in Kronstadt.

Zelensky made the comments during NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte's visit to Kyiv, where the two discussed Ukraine's air defense needs, long-range strike capabilities, defense production and continued Western financial support. Earlier, Zelensky stated that he saw a window of opportunity to end the war before winter, a message likely aimed partly at a war-weary domestic audience facing the prospect of another brutal Russian winter strike campaign.