Countries that "mistreated Ukraine" will be held to account after the war ends, Ukraine's Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba has warned. In an interview he said the choice every nation made following Russia's full-scale invasion will be "taken into account in building future relations". He also warned delays of Western weapon deliveries would cost Ukrainian lives.

"If one delivery is postponed for one day, it means that someone is going to die on the frontline," he said. In a wide-ranging interview, Mr Kuleba also discussed how he believes the war will end, the role of China in the war, and his disappointment that Pope Francis has yet to visit his country in war time.

Mr Kuleba spoke in Ukraine's imposing, Soviet-era foreign ministry at the heart of Kyiv, now protected by sandbags and armed guards. Although Ukraine has received military and economic support from Western powers since Russia's invasion, many countries in Africa, Asia and South America have stayed on the sidelines.

Some are historically sympathetic to Russia, some are concerned about the economic costs of the war, and others believe the West is prolonging the fighting unnecessarily. But Mr Kuleba made clear that countries which failed to support Ukraine now - those, he said, which had "misbehaved in the course of this war and mistreated Ukraine", would pay a price in the future.

Ukraine may well be dependent on Western aid and military support in the medium to long term and so its diplomatic disapproval may not worry some countries. But in peacetime Ukraine's huge grain exports give it substantial economic leverage, particularly in parts of the developing world.

Credit : Independent News Pakistan-INP