“The fight is here; I need ammunition, not a ride,” Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said in response to President Joe Biden being offered the possibility of a US-backed evacuation, according to a senior US intelligence official with direct knowledge of the conversation. .
US President Joe Biden authorized the release of $350 million in military assistance to Ukraine, before traveling home in Delaware for a weekend break as Ukraine burns after Russia invaded and the United States was condemned for appearing weak.
On Friday night, Biden and his wife Jill were photographed leaving the White House to board his Marine One helicopter as Europe grapples with its biggest conflict since World War II.
Meanwhile, the invading Russian forces closed in on the Ukrainian capital on Saturday, in an apparent move after a barrage of airstrikes on cities and military bases across the country.
According to two US officials with direct knowledge of conditions on the ground in Ukraine, a second US aircraft Russian military transport Ilyushin Il-76 was shot down near Bila Tserkva, 50 miles south of Kiev.
Each of the aircraft can carry up to 200 soldiers, although this has not been shared the death toll.
“Tonight they will launch an assault. The enemy will use his full power on all fronts to break through our defense. Tonight we have to stand firm. The fate of Ukraine is being decided now,” Zelensky said earlier in a televised speech.
The speech came after he was seen on video in his military tent having coffee with his men, he personally coordinated the defense of Kiev.
“There is a lot of fake news online that I asked our army to lay down their arms and that there is an evacuation”. I’m here. We will defend our state,” he said Saturday morning from Kiev.
The United States has imposed a series of financial sanctions against Russia in an attempt to dissuade Vladimir Putin from continuing to invade Ukraine.
In addition, it has provided Ukraine with considerable military equipment and, so far, Zelensky’s forces appear to have held off the Russian attack.
The United States also warned of sanctions Russia would face if Putin invaded, but the Russian leader decided to go ahead anyway. Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov will also be sanctioned.
On Friday, the European Union and the United Kingdom also announced that they would introduce sanctions against Putin and Lavrov.
Putin will become the most important target to be sanctioned after of the White House imposing measures on multiple Russian banks and oligarchs. Biden had been under pressure to personally target Putin for his attack on Ukraine.
The move will be largely symbolic as it is unclear where Putin’s money is and how much there is.
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