Last Monday, a US government delegation expressed support for Ukraine during a meeting in kyiv with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, who has been calling for more weapons to defend against Russian invasion.
This meeting came after the Russian attack on a residential building in the Ukrainian city of Dnipro, which left at least 40 dead, and as Ukraine awaits the deployment of more combat vehicles by NATO countries.
State Department Under Secretary Wendy Sherman, White House National Security Council Deputy Adviser Jon Finer and Defense Under Secretary Colin Kahl arrived in kyiv after visiting Germany and Poland.
In the Ukrainian capital, these US officials reaffirmed to Zelensky “the strong and solid commitment of the United States to the defense of Ukraine in the face of unwarranted Russian aggression,” the State Department said in a statement.
The delegation also met with the Prime Minister of Ukraine Denys Shmyhal to discuss ways to ensure the stability of the Ukrainian economy and seek investment for the reconstruction of the country.
Already at the meeting with Ukrainian Defense Minister Oleksii Reznikov, there was talk of sending weapons to Ukraine, and with Deputy Prime Minister Oleksandr Kubrakov, there was talk of repairing the electrical infrastructure damaged by Russia.
On January 6, the United States announced a new military aid package to Ukraine, the largest ever granted to kyiv, of more than 3,000 million dollars (about 2,770 million euros), which includes US-made armored vehicles.
The shipment of armored cars from the Western allies to Ukraine opens a new stage in the supply of military equipment to that country and comes weeks after Washington announced that it will send the European nation Patriot anti-aircraft batteries, its most sophisticated air defense system .
The military offensive launched on February 24, 2022 by Russia in Ukraine has so far caused the flight of more than 14 million people -6.5 million internally displaced persons and more than 7.9 million to European countries-, according to the The latest data from the UN, which classifies this refugee crisis as the worst in Europe since the Second World War (1939-1945).
Right now, 17.7 million Ukrainians need humanitarian aid and 9.3 million need food aid and shelter.
The Russian invasion – justified by Russian President Vladimir Putin as the need to “denazify” and demilitarize Ukraine for Russia’s security – was condemned by the wider international community, which has responded by sending arms to Ukraine and imposing them on Russia in political and economic sanctions.
The UN presented as confirmed since the beginning of the war 7,031 dead civilians and 11,327 wounded, stressing that these figures are far below the real ones.
Source: TSF
