Another $ 1 billion to Ukraine and cruise missiles
The Pentagon chief says the United States is currently working to provide Ukraine with long-range firearms, armored vehicles and coastal defense systems.
The third meeting of the Contact Group on Defense of Ukraine with the participation of defense ministers of 45 countries, NATO and the European Union, chaired by the United States, has started in Brussels.
Speaking at the opening of the meeting on June 15, the US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin He thanked Georgia, Moldova and Ecuador for joining the group.
“We have no time to lose. We came here to throw ashes. We must deepen our support for him in today’s battle of the Ukrainian armed forces. We must increase our strength today against the threats of tomorrow. “
Austin called on countries to mobilize additional support for Ukraine as Russian troops try to seize the Donbas.
Russian forces are 1 in 10
The Pentagon chief said the United States was working to provide Ukraine with long-range firearms, armored vehicles and coastal defense systems.
Austin said that the US’s deployment of HIMARS rocket launchers to Kiev had significantly increased the defense capabilities of Ukrainian forces.
The US Secretary of Defense has already thanked the countries that have provided arms to Ukraine so far.
Ukraine addressed the meeting on behalf of its army, which is currently fighting.
President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskis chief adviser Mixaylo Podolyak He said that currently Russian forces outnumber Ukrainian forces by 1 to 10:
“Brussels, we are waiting for your decision. Every day I receive messages from our defenders: We are standing firm, but tell us: when should we wait for weapons? ”
“We can’t win without you”
Deputy Minister of Defense of Ukraine Hanna Malyar He said on June 14 that Ukraine had received 10 percent of the weapons it wanted from the West.
“No matter how hard Ukraine tries, no matter how professional our army is, we cannot win this war without the help of our Western partners.”
Ms Malyar said the Ukrainian army fired 5,000 to 6,000 artillery shells a day, but Russia fired 10 times as many.
At the NATO summit in Madrid on June 14, Stoltenberg warned that the delivery of heavy weapons to Ukraine’s trained army could take some time:
“Ukraine is really in a critical situation, so we urgently need to increase our speed.”
He added that the allies were now sending more modern, more accurate, more far-reaching Western weapons to Ukraine, rather than old Soviet weapons and equipment.