2023-05-12 23:50:08
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken spoke with his Ukrainian colleague Dmytro Kuleba about the ongoing preparations for a Ukrainian counter-offensive in the Russian war of aggression. In a phone call on Friday, the two discussed how international partners could best contribute to the success of the offensive, the US State Department said. In the past few days, the indications of the start of the offensive had increased.
However, the Russian occupation authorities announced that the Luhansk region was hit by a Ukrainian missile attack. Six children and one adult were injured, it said in a telegram post on Saturday night. In addition, the administration building of a closed packaging factory and a factory for cleaning products in the capital Luhansk were damaged by two Ukrainian-made “Grom” (Thunder) rockets. A plume of black smoke could be seen over the city on video. Because Luhansk is a hundred kilometers behind the front line, there has been speculation that cruise missiles supplied by Britain were being used through Kiev for the first time.
Speaking to Kuleba, Blinken again pointed out that Ukraine’s sovereignty is crucial for security and peace in Europe. The US is considered Ukraine’s key ally in defending itself against the Russian invasion and has provided the country with more than $36.9 billion worth of military aid since the war of aggression began. Only on Thursday did Blinken confirm his country’s willingness to continue supplying Ukraine with the armaments it needs.
Ukraine has been repelling a Russian invasion with Western help for over 14 months. President Volodymyr Zelenskyj has repeatedly promised a victory for Ukraine with a full repatriation of all territories this year. However, Russian troops currently occupy around 20 percent of Ukrainian territory.
Zelenskyj has dampened expectations of the forthcoming counter-offensive and stressed that equipment is still lacking. At the same time, the Ukrainian army was able to record successes for the first time in the eastern city of Bakhmut, which had been fought over for months. The mercenary boss there, Yevgeny Prigozhin, attested that fighters from the regular Russian army were trying to flee.
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