The head of US diplomacy, Antony Blinken, will travel to Kiev on Sunday, two months after the start of the Russian invasion of Ukraine, Ukrainian President Volodymir Zelensky announced Saturday.
“Tomorrow, US officials will come to visit us: I will meet with the Minister of Defense [Lloyd Austin] and Antony Blinken,” Zelensky said at a press conference at a metro station in Kiev.
It will be the first official visit by members of the US government since February 24.
Zelensky also said he expected his US counterpart Joe Biden to go to Kiev to “support the Ukrainian people,” when the security situation allows.
The Ukrainian president said that Sunday's talks would focus on U.S. arms deliveries to Ukraine.
“We would like to have heavy and powerful weapons,” he said, while noting that the situation regarding weapons has improved in the last week.
“Last week, the signs, the messages, the steps, the deadlines, the numbers - I mean US weapons - everything improved,” he told reporters, assuring that he was “grateful” to the US administration, although he would like to have “even heavier and more powerful weapons” to confront the Russian army.
“In times of war we cannot refuse the most powerful military aid and it comes precisely from the United States and the United Kingdom. In addition, there are many European friends, but we understand the volumes of this aid,” said Zelensky, quoted by the Unian agency.
In this regard, he stated that “The United States is the world leader, so it sets the pace and tone for negotiations and aid.”
In most cases, it “influences whether a certain European state or another can provide us with the weapons that are important to us” and that is why the United States “is a strategic partner,” he said.
At the same press conference, which was held at a metro station for security reasons, Zelensky was asked by Infobae about Pope Francis' role in the conflict, criticized a few weeks ago for his refusal to directly condemn Russia. “I want Pope Francis to come to Kiev to unlock the humanitarian corridors in Mariupol,” he assured Infobae.
According to the president, every time Francis prays or talks about the dramatic situation of Ukrainians, he is expressing his support. “I am grateful for that,” he added.
“I wish the Pope could come to Kiev. We met in the past. I ask for your support in helping in the besieged Mariupol and for a lifesaving ceasefire,” he insisted on Infobae's question about whether he had spoken with Francis.
More weapons and more sanctions
On Friday, Ukrainian Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal had met with Blinken in Washington, who asked for more U.S. aid in weapons and more sanctions against Russia as the instrument that “influences the aggressor the most.”
This was noted by Shmyhal at the beginning of his meeting with Blinken on a day when he also met with other members of the Administration chaired by Joe Biden to ask for help for his country from different areas.
The Ukrainian Prime Minister pointed out that his country “strongly” needs four things: weapons, sanctions for Russia, financial aid and prospects for belonging to Europe.
On weapons, he demanded more aid from the United States a day after Biden announced an additional $800 million in military assistance to the country.
He also insisted on the need to persist sanctions, and called for more funding to address humanitarian and social needs and help Ukraine's macroeconomic stability.
But in addition, Denys Shmyhal stressed to Blinken Ukraine's desire to be “part of the European family”, as he assured, “96% of Ukrainians”, who are committed to “being part of the civilized world and not of a Soviet Union or a Russian empire.”
With information from AFP and EFE
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