U.S. Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin told a press conference at Ramstein Air Base in Germany that Ukraine’s allies are doing everything possible to ensure the Ukrainian military achieves its goals during the spring offensive. Austin, along with Chairman of the U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff, General Mark Milley, answered questions from reporters after the regular meeting of the Ukrainian Defense Contact Group, which discussed the needs of the Ukrainian Armed Forces in armour, air defense and ammunition. . Ukrainian Defense Minister Oleksiy Reznikov also took part in the meeting.
“The Ukrainian military has the resources and the courage to succeed,” the Pentagon chief said. He noted that NATO countries have already delivered more than 230 tanks, more than 1,550 armored vehicles and other military equipment and ammunition to Ukraine, and as a result, the Armed Forces of Ukraine have been able to create 9 additional armored brigades.
Austin also announced that the American M1A1 Abrams tanks promised to Ukraine would be delivered ahead of schedule. Already at the end of May, 31 M1A1 Abrams tanks will be sent to Germany for a 10-week training course for Ukrainian tankers.
According to Austin, the European Union has promised, in turn, to accelerate the production of ammunition for Ukraine.
The Pentagon chief praised Finland for participating in the “Ramstein Group” for the first time as a NATO member, and said he was confident that Sweden could also join the alliance by July.
Austin again rejected the Russian propaganda formulation that Russia invaded Ukraine in response to NATO expansion. “The Russian invasion of Ukraine is not a response to NATO expansion, Putin’s war is what caused NATO expansion,” Austin said.
In turn, General Mark Milley told reporters that “the Ukrainian spirit is not broken.”
According to Milli, the allies are doing everything possible to quickly train the Ukrainian military in the operation of military equipment supplied by NATO. 2,500 Ukrainians are currently undergoing training in Germany, about 8,000 have already completed it, and that the first group of 65 Ukrainian soldiers have undergone training on Patriot systems in the United States and returned to Europe.
Asked by reporters about supplying Ukraine with F-16 fighter jets, Milley replied that in his opinion, the most economical way to control Ukrainian airspace now is to strengthen its air defense, which What are the allies doing?
Assessing the current situation on the front, Milli noted the low morale of the Russian troops and the involvement of too large forces in the Bakhmut region, which did not lead to any noticeable progress.
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