Ukraine LIVE: US set to offer $1.8m in military aid including Patriots
Rishi Sunak meets Zelensky during first visit to Ukraine
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Ukraine is to be provided with state-of-the-art military equipment including a Patriot missile battery and precision-guided bombs for their fighter jets as part of a (£1.8billion) £1.5billion US military aid package move which will doubtless be greeted with deep disquiet in Moscow. The news broke as US President Joe Biden prepared to welcome Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy to Washington.
US officials have described details of the aid on condition of anonymity because it has not yet been announced.
The aid signals a significant expansion by the US in the kinds of advanced weaponry it will send to Ukraine to bolster the country’s air defences against what has been an increasing barrage of Russian missile strikes.
The package, expected to be announced later today, will include about $1 billion in weapons from Pentagon stocks and another $800 million from the Ukraine Security Assistance Initiative, which funds weapons, ammunition, training and other assistance, officials said.
Mr Zelenskyy and other Ukraine officials have pressed Western leaders to provide more advanced weapons, including the Patriots, to help their country in its war with Russia.
The aid comes as Congress is poised to approve another $44.9 billion in assistance for Ukraine as part of a massive spending bill.
That would ensure US support will continue next year and beyond as Republicans take control of the House in January. Some GOP lawmakers have expressed wariness about the assistance.
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Zelensky heads to US today for joint meeting of Congress as Ukraine begs for aid
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky is making his way to Washington on Wednesday for a summit with President Joe Biden and to address Congress in his first known trip outside the country since Russia’s invasion began in February.
He said on his Twitter account that the visit was “to strengthen resilience and defense capabilities” of Ukraine and discuss cooperation between his country and the US with Biden.
Zelensky headed abroad after making a daring and dangerous trip Tuesday to what he called the hottest spot on the 1,300-kilometre (800-mile) front line of the conflict, the city of Bakhmut in Ukraine’s contested Donetsk province.
He praised Ukrainian troops for their “courage, resilience and strength” as artillery boomed in the background.
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Putin reels as US confirms $1.8m in military aid including Patriot missiles
Ukraine is to be provided with state-of-the-art military equipment including a Patriot missile battery and precision-guided bombs for their fighter jets in a as part of a £1.5bn US military aid package move which will doubtless be greeted with deep disquiet in Moscow.
The news broke as US President Joe Biden prepared to welcome Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy to Washington.
US officials have described details of the aid on condition of anonymity because it has not yet been announced.
The aid signals a significant expansion by the US in the kinds of advanced weaponry it will send to Ukraine to bolster the country’s air defences against what has been an increasing barrage of Russian missile strikes.
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