Ukraine’s Zelenskiy visits Poland as allies step up military aid
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy visited Poland on Wednesday, buoyed by the latest announcement of U.S. military aid, as Russian troops pressed on with their long and costly battle to seize the eastern city of Bakhmut.
Zelenskiy planned to thank his Polish allies, who have provided vital weaponry to his government since Russia’s invasion and have taken in millions of Ukrainian refugees.
French President Emmanuel Macron, meanwhile, was visiting China after he and U.S. President Joe Biden agreed they would try to engage Beijing to hasten the end of the Russian assault on Ukraine, now in its second year.
Beijing has called for a comprehensive ceasefire and described its position on the conflict as “impartial”.
The United States on Tuesday pledged $2.6 billion more in military assistance for Zelenskiy’s government, including three air surveillance radars, anti-tank rockets and fuel trucks, taking pledged U.S. military aid to more than $35 billion.
Moscow’s embassy in Washington accused the United States of wanting to drag out the conflict as long as possible, Russian news agency TASS said.
The West has stepped up aid as Ukrainian forces prepare to mount a counteroffensive in the east against Russian forces, although when exactly it might kick off has not been disclosed.
Spain said six Leopard 2A4 tanks it has promised to send to Ukraine would leave the country in the second half of April, later than initially planned. Spain has also trained 40 tank crew members and 15 mechanics at a military base in the northeastern city of Zaragoza.
Other NATO countries, including Germany, Poland and Portugal, have promised to send a total of 48 Leopard 2 tanks to Ukraine.
The battlefield focus remained on Bakhmut, a mining city and transport hub on the edge of a chunk of Donetsk province largely under Russian control. Both sides have suffered huge casualties and much of the city has been reduced to ruins after months of street fighting and bombardments.
Near the town of Niu-York, 50 km (30 miles) south of Bakhmut, Ukrainian soldiers in muddy dugouts described repelling Russian attacks on a daily basis.
“They creep in, fire and try to exhaust us. Then they evaluate the situation and can move forward for a little more,” commander of infantry unit, who gave his nom-de-guerre as “Bodia” told Reuters.
“Meanwhile, we try to let them get closer to us so that we can hit them more precisely.”
Ukrainian military commanders have stressed the importance of holding Bakhmut and other towns and inflicting losses prior to the anticipated counteroffensive.
The Ukrainian general staff said in a report: “There was no letup in enemy actions aimed at storming the city of Bakhmut. At least 20 enemy attacks were repelled here alone over the past 24 hours.”
Mercenaries from the Wagner group – who have spearheaded the assault on Bakhmut – said at the weekend they had captured the city centre, a claim dismissed by Kyiv.
The U.S.-based Institute for the Study of War said the Wagner fighters had made advances in Bakhmut and were likely to continue trying to consolidate control of the city centre and push westward through dense urban areas.
Source: Reuters
