Evening Telegraph (First Edition)
West pressed for weapons upgrade
UKRAINIAN president Volodymyr Zelensky pressed the West for more powerful weapons as he prepared to meet top US officials in the war-torn country’s capital yesterday, while Russian forces concentrated their attacks on the east, including trying to dislodge the last Ukrainian troops in the battered port of Mariupol.
Mr Zelensky announced the planned visit by US secretary of state Antony Blinken and US defence secretary Lloyd Austin at a news conference on Saturday night in a Kyiv subway station. The White House has not commented.
He said he was looking for the Americans to produce results, both in arms and security guarantees.
“You can’t come to us emptyhanded, and we are expecting not just presents or some kind of cakes, we are expecting specific things and specific weapons,” he said.
The visit would be the first by senior US officials since Russia invaded Ukraine 60 days ago. Mr Blinken stepped briefly on to Ukrainian soil in March to meet the country’s foreign minister during a visit to Poland. Mr Zelensky’s last face-to-face meeting with a US leader was on February 19 in Munich with vice president Kamala Harris.
While the West has funnelled military equipment to Ukraine, Mr Zelensky has stressed repeatedly that the country needs more heavy weapons, including long-range air defence systems, as well as warplanes.
His meeting with Mr Austin and Mr Blinken was set to take place as Ukrainians and Russians observed Orthodox Easter, when the faithful celebrate the resurrection of Jesus.
Speaking from St Sophia Cathedral, Mr Zelensky, who is Jewish, highlighted its significance.