Austin promises Ukraine what it needs to fight Russia but goes no further

KYIV: The United States "will get Ukraine what it needs" to fight its war with Russia, US Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin said on an unannounced visit to Kyiv on Monday, but he gave no hint that Washington might endorse key planks of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy's so-called "victory plan."

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The United States will provide Ukraine with what it requires "to fight for its survival and security," Austin said in a speech at the Diplomatic Academy of Ukraine. He noted that the US has delivered more than USD 58 billion in security assistance for Ukraine since Russia's February 2022 full-scale invasion, making it Kyiv's main backer.

But Zelenskyy has asked Ukraine's Western allies to go a few steps further, notably inviting Ukraine to join NATO and letting it use Western-supplied longer-range missiles to strike military targets deep inside Russian territory. Those steps have met with a lukewarm response.