RAMSTEIN AIR BASE: President Volodymyr Zelensky joined a meeting of Ukraine's international backers in Germany on Friday, appealing for additional weapons as Kyiv faces advancing Russian forces in the east and devastating strikes by Moscow.
He was also due to meet German Chancellor Olaf Scholz and then head to Italy, following the meeting at Ramstein Air Base, which comes days after 55 people were killed and 300 wounded in a Russian missile strike on the city of Poltava. "We need more weapons to drive Russian forces off our land," Zelensky said.
He also urged Kyiv's supporters to follow through on previous commitments, saying: "The number of air defence systems that have not been delivered is significant."
And he again called for restrictions on the use of long-range Western weapons to hit targets inside Russia to be lifted.
"We need to have this long-range capability, not only on the occupied territory of Ukraine, but also on the Russian territory," Zelensky said.
The meeting at the base southwest of Frankfurt is being hosted by US defence chief Lloyd Austin, who announced that Washington will provide $250 million in new military aid for Ukraine.
The package "will surge in more capabilities to meet Ukraine's evolving requirements," Austin told the meeting.
The assistance is expected to include ammunition for HIMARS precision rocket launchers, artillery rounds, anti-tank and anti-air weapons, a US defence official said on condition of anonymity.
The talks in Germany, with representatives from some 50 nations, will focus on areas including bolstering Ukraine's air defences and encouraging allies to boost their defence industries, Pentagon spokesman Major General Pat Ryder said ahead of the meeting.
"Ukraine matters to US and international security, and the efforts of (Kyiv's allies meeting in Ramstein) continue to play a vital role in Ukraine's fight for freedom and sovereignty," he said.
The meeting comes as Moscow's forces advance in the Donbas, with Russian President Vladimir Putin on Thursday declaring that capturing the eastern area was his "primary objective" in the conflict. Russia has adapted its aims, concentrating instead on trying to conquer eastern Ukraine.
Speaking in Oslo Friday, Nato Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said Ukraine needs more military support, and that the "quickest way to end this war is to provide weapons to Ukraine".
"Putin must realise that he cannot win on the battlefield, but must accept a just and lasting peace where Ukraine prevails as a sovereign and independent nation," he said.
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