US, UK pledge continued Ukraine aid ahead of expected counteroffensive

By Michael Hernandez

WASHINGTON (AA) - The US and UK pledged Tuesday to maintain military support for Ukraine as Kyiv's forces prepare for a counteroffensive to retake additional territory occupied by Russia.

Secretary of State Antony Blinken lauded the UK's contributions as he addressed reporters at the State Department alongside British Foreign Minister James Cleverly. He said London has trained tens of thousands of Ukrainian troops and has provided Kyiv with vital aid "that will help equip Ukraine's defenders as they work to retake more of the nation's territory in the weeks and months ahead."

"Right now, of course, the focus is on the Ukrainian efforts that we anticipate to try to retake more of the territory that's been seized from Ukraine by Russia over the last the last 14-plus months," he said.

"It's not only the weapons, it's the training, the UK has been engaged in significant training, it's making sure that the Ukrainians can maintain the systems that we provide them. And it's important, of course, that they have the right plans, again, to be successful. My own estimation is that they have in place across all of those dimensions what they need to continue to be successful in regaining territory that was seized by force by Russia," he added.

Cleverly said countries around the world "are watching how we respond to this challenge," emphasizing that the "outcome of this conflict will have effects all over the world."

"We should recognize that if we do not reestablish the principles of the UN Charter, be the foundation stone of peace in the post-Second World War era, that powerful nations cannot invade the neighbors with impunity, the world will be more dangerous, more expensive, more difficult," he said.

The meeting of the top diplomats comes as the US announced an additional $1.2 billion military aid package for Ukraine. It includes additional air defense systems and munitions, equipment to integrate Western air defense launchers, missiles and radars with those in Ukraine, ammunition for counter-drone systems, 155mm artillery rounds, and training, maintenance, and sustainment support.

Blinken said the US and UK "are teaming up" for what is expected to be a mammoth task of rebuilding Ukraine once the war is over and said those efforts will be bolstered by a June conference hosted by the UK to address the war-torn nation's recovery.