In their final meeting, Zelenskyy and Austin say military aid to Ukraine must continue under Trump
Share:
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin used their final meeting Thursday to press the incoming Trump administration to not give up on Kyiv’s fight, warning that to cease military support now “will only invite more aggression, chaos and war.”.
“We’ve come such a long way that it would honestly be crazy to drop the ball now and not keep building on the defense coalitions we’ve created,” Zelenskyy said. “No matter what’s going on in the world, everyone wants to feel sure that their country will not just be erased of the map.”.
Austin also announced the U.S. would send another $500 million in security assistance to Ukraine, including missiles for fighter jets, sustainment equipment for F-16s, armored bridging systems and small arms and ammunition. The weapons are funded through presidential drawdown authority, meaning they can be pulled directly from U.S. stockpiles, and the Pentagon is pushing to get them into Ukraine before the end of the month.
Ukraine is in the midst of launching a second offensive in Russia’s Kursk region and is facing a barrage of long-range missiles and ongoing advances from Russia as both sides seek to put themselves in the strongest negotiating point possible before President-elect Donald Trump takes office on Jan. 20.
Zelenskyy called the Kursk offensive “one of our biggest wins” that has cost Russia and North Korea, which sent soldiers to help Russia in Kursk, thousands of troops. Zelenskyy said the offensive resulted in North Korea suffering 4,000 casualties, but U.S. estimates put the number lower at about 1,200.
