Volodymyr Zelensky expecting more powerful weapons to repel a Russian offensive

Volodymyr Zelensky expecting more powerful weapons to repel a Russian offensive.  

As Russia’s invasion reached its third month, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin arrived in Kyiv late Sunday and spoke with President Volodymyr Zelensky, according to an aide to the Ukrainian leader.

Zelensky has requested more strong weapons to stave off a Russian onslaught in the south and east, called the Battle of the Donbas by Zelensky.

The trip by Blinken and Austin, which was confirmed earlier by Zelenskiy, would be the highest-level US visit to Ukraine since Russian President Vladimir Putin launched the invasion on February 24.

Blinken and Austin’s presence in Kyiv has not been confirmed by Washington, which usually withholds information on essential visits to conflict zones for security reasons.

Blinken and Austin landed in Kyiv late Sunday, according to Oleksiy Arestovych, a Zelenskiy associate, who said in a social media video that they were meeting with Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko.

“We are encouraged by the Orthodox Christians’ resilience in Ukraine in the face of President Putin’s ruthless war of attack,” Blinken tweeted earlier.

On Twitter, Zelenskiy praised US President Joe Biden and the US government for their support for Ukraine.

In a dynamic address at Kyiv’s 1,000-year-old Saint Sophia Cathedral to honor Orthodox Easter, Zelenskiy claimed his country would overcome “difficult times” as violence in the east overshadowed the religious celebrations.

After forcing a Russian withdrawal from around Kyiv, Moscow’s offensive has shifted to the eastern Donbas region and the country’s south.

Several nations have reopened embassies recently as a semblance of normalcy has returned to the city, and some inhabitants who left the conflict have returned for Easter.

Moscow, which refers to its efforts in Ukraine as a “special military operation,” denies targeting civilians and dismisses proof of atrocities, claiming that Kyiv faked them to derail peace talks.

Pope Francis has urged for a cease-fire over Easter: “To assist the exhausted populace, put an end to the attacks. Please, halt, “he stated

The spiritual authority of Eastern Orthodox Christians worldwide, Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew, has asked for humanitarian corridors in Mariupol and other areas of Ukraine, where “an unfathomable human tragedy is unfolding.” Churches across Central Europe were packed with Ukrainian refugees.

“I pray that this nightmare in Ukraine ends soon so that we can return home,” said Nataliya Krasnopolskaia, who came to Prague last month from Odesa, one of the estimated 5 million Ukrainians who have fled the country.