On Wednesday, September 11, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and British Foreign Secretary David Lemmy arrived in Kyiv.
The heads of the diplomatic departments of our main partners – the USA and Great Britain – came to Ukraine. This is the first joint visit of the British Foreign Secretary and the US Secretary of State to Kyiv. It is expected that the Western guests will allow long-range missiles to be fired into Russian territory during their visit. It has not been officially announced.
Great help
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken, during a visit to Kyiv on Wednesday, September 11, announced the allocation of humanitarian and other aid to Ukraine totaling more than $700 million.
The Secretary of State said that Russia is again trying to attack Ukrainian energy “to use the cold as a weapon against the Ukrainian people.”
“That is why today we are announcing the allocation of $325 million in new funding to restore Ukrainian energy and power grids,” he announced, adding that a G7 Plus meeting would be held soon, which is also committed to helping Ukraine’s energy sector.
The US Secretary of State also announced $290 million in humanitarian support to provide basic services – such as safe drinking water, food and medicine – to the millions of people in Ukraine and the region who have been forced to flee their homes.
“And finally, we are announcing $102 million in additional funding for humanitarian demining to help clear landmines and munitions left by Russia across Ukraine,” Blinken added.
The UK has announced at least £242 million in support for Ukraine in the face of ongoing Russian attacks, as well as deploying $484 million in financial support and military equipment.
The attack on the Russian Federation runs deep
The Guardian, citing sources in the British government, wrote that Great Britain has decided to allow Ukraine to use Storm Shadow cruise missiles against Russian targets.
Allegedly, the decision to use Storm Shadow to strike Russian targets was made in private and is unlikely to be announced. One of the sources mentioned to The Guardian that without such a decision, the joint visit of Lemmy and Blinken to Kyiv would not have taken place.
The material says that the British side is said to consider the public statement of using long-range missiles to strike Russia as “extremely provocative.”
It is also “quite likely” that Ukraine will be able to use Storm Shadow with some restrictions “to prevent ill-considered or unnecessary attacks,” the material said.
The American Axios, citing the Chairman of the Foreign Affairs Committee of the US House of Representatives, Michael McCaul, also reported that during his visit to Kyiv, Blinken will announce the permission to strike ATACMS long-range missiles on the territory of Russia.
“I spoke to Blinken two days ago, and he is traveling with his counterpart from the UK to Kyiv to essentially tell them that they will allow (attacks on Russia with ATACMS missiles),” McCaul was quoted as saying by reporters.
More realistic plan
Ukraine may need to develop a more realistic plan, at least for the next year of war, the Wall Street Journal said.
The WSJ noted that the West still supports President Volodymyr Zelensky’s long-term goal of restoring Ukrainian control over its territory, but some European diplomats say Ukraine needs to be more pragmatic in its wartime goals and strategy. , because it can, among other things, help. Western officials advocated to their subjects for the need to provide arms and aid to the country.
Western officials, speaking on condition of anonymity, told the WSJ that US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and British Foreign Secretary David Lemmy, who arrived in Kyiv, will discuss, besides among other things, how best to determine success for Ukraine and what assistance it will need for it.
According to the WSJ, the talks highlight ongoing tensions between Kiev and the West over reconciliation over the desire to withdraw Russian troops from Ukrainian territory and the military reality on the ground.
Senior European officials said Kyiv had been told that a complete victory for Ukraine would require hundreds of billions of dollars in Western support, something neither Washington nor Europe could deliver.
Source: korrespondent
I am David Wyatt, a professional writer and journalist for Buna Times. I specialize in the world section of news coverage, where I bring to light stories and issues that affect us globally. As a graduate of Journalism, I have always had the passion to spread knowledge through writing.