Blinken says Ukraine needs more support
VERSAILLES: Ukraine is at a “critical moment” in its war with Russia and urgently needs more Western support, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said on Tuesday, bemoaning the stalemate in Congress over a multi-billion dollar military package for Kyiv.
“It is absolutely essential to get Ukrainians what they continue to need to defend themselves, particularly when it comes to munitions and air defences,” Blinken told reporters during a visit to France. “It’s another reason why the supplementary budget request that President (Joe) Biden has made to (the US) Congress must be fulfilled as quickly as possible.”
Biden has urged the Republican-controlled US House of Representatives to endorse the military and financial aid package, but House Speaker Mike Johnson has held up the matter for months, citing domestic priorities.ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy has said that if Ukraine does not get the aid, his forces will have to retreat “in small steps”.
Blinken and French Defence Minister Sebastien Lecornu had earlier visited a factory where arms producer Nexter produces Caesar howitzer cannons. Lecornu said Nexter was working to produce 12 Caesar cannons a month compared to six at the moment. French President Emmanuel Macron has in recent weeks adopted a more hawkish stance towards Russia, amid fears that Ukraine is losing ground in the war, notably as US support wanes.blinken will hold talks with French Foreign Minister Stephane Sejourne before meeting Macron. Meanwhile, A
Ukrainian drone struck Russia’s third largest oil refinery on
Tuesday about 1,300 km from the front lines, hitting a unit that processes about 155,000 barrels of crude per day though an industry source said the damage was not significant.
Russian officials said its jamming devices locked onto a Ukrainian drone near Tatneft’s Taneco refinery, which has an annual production capacity of more than 340,000 barrels per day. An industry source who spoke to Reuters on condition of anonymity said the damage to the unit was not critical while the personnel was returning to the plant. A fire broke out at the refinery but was extinguished within 20 minutes, the state news agency RIA said, adding that output had not been disrupted.
A source in Ukraine, which has been at war with Russia since Moscow began its two years ago, said in Kyiv that the Taneco refining unit had been hit, causing a fire. The source said the aim of the strike was to reduce Russia’s oil revenue.
It is absolutely essential to get Ukrainians what they continue to need to defend themselves, particularly when it comes to munitions and air defences
ANTONY BLINKEN US Secretary of State