Top US Officials Meet Zelensky in Ukraine’s Kyiv

Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin met Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky in Kyiv on Sunday.

This visit comes after Russia moved its troops east and south and the war entered a new stage after failing to occupy Kyiv or overthrow the Zelensky regime in the first weeks of the conflict. Ukraine is pressing the United States and its allies to send more powerful weapons to repel Russia from the eastern Donbas region, where Russian troops are trying to take full control of Mariupol's besieged port.

With Russia's President Vladimir Putin showing no signs of withdrawal in the third month of the conflict, the US and European allies have further tightened sanctions on Moscow and accelerated the supply of weapons to Ukraine.

Joe Biden promised $1.3 billion in additional weapons and financial assistance last week, adding for the first time to an $800 million package that includes heavy artillery and additional helicopters. Recent aids include dozens of howitzers and attack drones.