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The US secretary of state, Antony Blinken, has told Volodymyr Zelenskiy the war with Russia is in a “pivotal moment” as Ukraine’s military continues its counteroffensive in the south of the country. The Associated Press reported that Blinken told the Ukrainian president: “We know this is a pivotal moment, more than six months into Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine, as your counteroffensive is now under way and proving effective.”
Blinken’s surprise trip to Kyiv came after the US unveiled nearly $2.7bn (£2.4bn) in new military support to Ukraine and other European countries threatened by Russia. Blinken travelled in secret on his second trip to Kyiv since the Russian invasion began in February. He approved $2bn in foreign military financing under a programme in which the US offers loans or grants to other nations to buy US-produced weapons. That amount is in addition to another $675m in military assistance announced by the defence secretary, Lloyd Austin, and includes more arms, ammunition and supplies for precision-guided Himars rockets.
Poland and the Baltic states have announced they will temporarily restrict access for Russian citizens holding European Union visas. The prime ministers of Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania and Poland said in a statement that the move had been taken to address “public policy and security threats” arising from the “substantial and growing influx of Russian citizens” into the EU.
