Ukraine war: Russia warns US over sending more weapons to Kyiv
The Kremlin has warned the US that sending more weapons to Ukraine will only aggravate the devastating 10-month war ignited by Russia's illegal invasion.
Speaking during a meeting with his top military brass on Wednesday, Putin said Moscow would use the combat experience from Ukraine to enhance its armed forces. He told the military leaders to analyze the Western weapons used by Ukraine to “develop our armed forces and strengthen the capability of our troops.”
He said the country’s military should learn lessons and modernise based on its experiences, and that special emphasis would go to developing his country’s nuclear forces, which he described as “the main guarantee of Russia’s sovereignty.”
In a speech at the same meeting, Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu said Russia’s military must expand from its current size of 1 million personnel to 1.5 million service members, a number that should include 695,000 volunteer contract soldiers.
He also said Russia would form new units in the country’s west in view of plans by Finland and Sweden to join NATO.
The Biden administration announced Wednesday that it will provide $1.85 billion (€1.73b) in military aid to Ukraine, rolling out funding for a Patriot missile battery as Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy arrived in Washington for his first known trip out of his country since Russia invaded in February.
The White House announcement came just hours before Zelenskyy landed at Joint Base Andrews, just outside the capital. The package includes $1 billion in weapons and equipment from Pentagon stocks, including the Patriot battery for the first time, and $850 million in funding through the Ukraine Security Assistance Initiative.
Part of the USAI will be used to fund a satellite
Read more on euronews.com
