US weapons Kyiv hails agreement as Moscow rejects threat of sanctions

Politicians in Kyiv have welcomed Donald Trump's announcement that billions of dollars' worth of US military equipment, including Patriot air defence systems, will be sent to Ukraine, while officials in Moscow dismissed his threat of sanctions against Russia as hot air.

- Luke Harding Kyiv Pjotr Sauer

The Ukrainian president, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, expressed gratitude to Trump last night. "I am grateful to President Trump for his readiness to support the protection of our people's lives," Zelenskyy said in his nightly video address.

He also said he had had a "productive" discussion in Kyiv with Keith Kellogg, Trump's special representative to Ukraine.

Andrii Kovalenko, a member of Ukraine's national security and defence council, earlier summed up the positive response of Zelenskyy's government. In a one-word reaction, he wrote: "Cool."

Others acknowledged that Ukraine's relations with Washington had improved following Zelenskyy's disastrous meeting with Trump in the Oval Office in February.

But there was also scepticism that the new package - coupled with the threat of sanctions in 50 days on the Russian economy - would be enough to persuade Moscow to stop fighting. One former Ukrainian military officer said it was unlikely to make a meaningful impression on the Kremlin, or act as a strong deterrent.