KYIV – US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and his British counterpart David Lammy announced new aid packages for Ukraine after arriving in Kyiv on September 11 for a joint visit, which comes as Ukraine pressures its Western allies to lift restrictions that prevents her. using long-range weapons deep in Russia.
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Both Blinken and Lammy said the conflict has reached a “critical” point, with Russian forces continuing to attack Ukraine’s eastern Donetsk region and continue to use rockets, cruise bombs and drones against Ukrainian cities.
Blinken announced more than $700 million in aid, much of it to boost Ukraine’s energy grid, while Lammy confirmed his country would provide another £600 million ($782 million) in aid and loan guarantees.
When Blinken and Lammy arrived from Poland by train, there were reports that Russian forces had begun attacking Ukrainian troops and capturing territory in Kursk a little more than a month after Ukraine launched a surprise incursion into Russian territory.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy has been pleading with Kiev’s allies for months to allow Ukraine to fire Western weapons, including long-range US ATACMS and British Storm Shadows, deep into Russian territory to limit Moscow’s ability to launch attacks.
Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andriy Sybiha said he and Zelenskiy held “detailed and productive” talks with Blinken and Lammy. Sybiha told reporters at a joint press conference that he and his two counterparts discussed arms supplies and air defense.
Zelensky told military and defense leaders last week that they should not limit his country’s ability to fight Kremlin forces.
US President Joe Biden said on September 10 that his administration was “working out” a way to lift the restrictions, though he gave no details.
Blinken said he would bring the discussion he had with Zelensky about the missiles “back to Washington” to brief Biden, who is scheduled to meet with British Prime Minister Keir Starmer on September 13. “No doubt” they will talk about it during that meeting, Blinken said.
He told a news conference that the United States “has adapted and adapted as the needs have changed, as the battlefield has changed. And I have no doubt we will continue to do so as it evolves.”
Zelensky said he hoped to speak with Biden later this month, noting that US military and financial support was crucial.
“We rely on it a lot, and frankly, we can’t win without it,” Zelenskiy said.
Ukrainian air defense intercepted 20 Shahed suicide drones launched by Russia in the early hours of 9/11, according to the Ukrainian Armed Forces.
The military said Russia fired 25 Shahed drones, an Iskander ballistic missile, two S-300 anti-aircraft cruise missiles and six Kh-31p anti-radar missiles overnight.
The projectiles aimed at Kiev, Kherson, Cherkasy, Sumy, Dnepropetrovsk and Poltava.
Governor of Dnepropetrovsk Serhiy Lysak he said two people were injured and hospitalized as a result of the Russian attack. He said the strikes also caused destruction and fire in one of the businesses in Kamian district.
No casualties or damage were immediately reported from other regions.
Blinken previously said that Russia was “increasing its attacks on cities, on people, especially targeting energy infrastructure … all before the coldest months,” adding that the tactic was part of “President Vladimir Putin’s winter playbook.”
He told a news conference that $325 million of the more than $700 million in aid to Ukraine will help repair and restore Ukraine’s power generation facilities, provide emergency backup power and strengthen the physical security of power infrastructure. About $290 million will go toward food, water, shelter, health care and education programs for Ukrainians in need in the country and refugees outside the country. The remaining $102 million will be used for demining, he said.
“Our support will not fade, our unity will not break,” Blinken said. “Putin will not survive a coalition of countries committed to Ukraine’s success, and certainly not the Ukrainian people.”
