West vows more arms, sanctions against Russia

KRAMATORSK: Western allies on Tuesday pledged more military supplies and sanctions to assist Ukraine as its troops battle against Russian forces intensifying their offensive in the east of the country. Ukraine’s armed forces said fighting had increased throughout Donbas, and the ministry of defense reported heavy clashes including near the town of Marinka in the Donetsk region.

Responding to the new Russian push, the United States and European Union agreed to increase “Moscow’s international isolation”, during a virtual meeting between US President Joe Biden and European leaders on Tuesday. “We will further tighten our sanctions against Russia and step up financial and security assistance for Ukraine,” European Commission chief Ursula von der Leyen wrote on Twitter. Russia’s defense ministry said that “high-precision air-based missiles” had hit 13 Ukrainian positions in parts of Donbas while other air strikes “hit 60 military assets”, including in towns close to the eastern frontline.

Biden suggested Tuesday to reporters that the United States would send more artillery - as the latest $800 million US aid package starts to arrive in Ukraine, including 18 howitzers, 40,000 artillery rounds, 200 armored personnel carriers and 11 helicopters. “We will continue to provide them more ammunition as we will provide them more military assistance,” White House spokeswoman Jen Psaki said in response to fears that Ukraine was running low.

The Pentagon said Tuesday that Ukraine had also recently received fighter planes and aircraft parts to bolster its air force, declining to specify the number of aircraft and their origin. Ukrainian forces “have available to them more fixed-wing fighter aircraft than they did two weeks ago,” Pentagon spokesman John Kirby told reporters. Kyiv has asked its Western partners to provide MiG-29s that its pilots already know how to fly, and which a handful of Eastern European countries have.