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Zelensky thanks Biden for ‘unprecedented’ support for Ukraine. His response
Ukraine's Volodymyr Zelensky talked to the United States' Joe Biden and “appreciated” the assistance being provided by the US to Ukraine, highlighting that it contributes "to success on the battlefield and supports the stability of the Ukrainian economy”.
Amid the ongoing Russia-Ukraine war, Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky talked to the United States counterpart Joe Biden via a phone call on Sunday, thanking him for the “unprecedented” help for his conflict-ravaged country to bolster its defence and financial fronts. "I thanked for the unprecedented defence and financial assistance that the USA provides to Ukraine," Zelensky said, news agency Reuters reported, citing his Telegram post. "This not only contributes to success on the battlefield but also supports the stability of the Ukrainian economy," he further added.
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On the damage to Ukrainian energy grids due to repeated Russian missile strikes, Zelensky underlined, "Ukraine appreciated the help being provided by the US to restore the energy system."
Biden, on the call, assured Zelensky that boosting Ukraine's defence system was a priority for the US, the White House said in a readout. He also welcomed Zelensky's "stated openness to a just peace based on fundamental principles enshrined in the United Nations Charter”.
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On the sidelines, US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen also hinted in an interview that the nation was prepared to aid Ukraine for “as long as it takes,” a Bloomberg report highlighted. The US has promised $38 billion in military aid and delivered $13 billion in direct aid to Ukraine so far, the report added.
Before Joe Biden, Zelensky also talked with French and Turkish leaders Emmanuel Macron and Recep Tayyip Erdogan. Sharing the details, the Ukrainian leader said he and the French counterpart had an hour-long discussion on defence issues while with Erdogan, he discussed ways to expand the grain deal with Russia.
In his nightly video address, he also updated on the situation in Odesa region, one of the latest sites of the Russian attacks which suffered power outages, forcing ports towards partial dysfunction. Regional governor Maksym Marchenko was quoted as saying by Reuters that power had been restored to some extent and the number of people without electricity in the region fell to 300,000 from 1.5 million.
Odesa’s power supply had been “critically” hit after Russia unveiled an attack on the region using Iranian-made drones to hit two energy plants on Saturday.
(With agency inputs)
