WASHINGTON – President Joe Biden met with the Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin on Wednesday, along with his team and the joint chiefs of staff amid Russia’s ongoing war in Ukraine.
As of April 14, the U.S. has committed over 1,400 Stinger anti-aircraft systems to Ukraine since Russia’s unprovoked invasion began. pic.twitter.com/X8ean7Hftv
— Department of Defense 🇺🇸 (@DeptofDefense) April 20, 2022
“Weapons and ammunition are flowing in daily,” Biden said.
His remarks come as the Treasury Department launched a new round of sanctions that target a commercial Russian bank and a global network of more than 40 people and entities as the State Department rolled out visa restrictions on 625 Russian nationals.
I was pleased to welcome @mblaszczak to the Pentagon for a great meeting on our joint efforts to provide security assistance to Ukraine. Poland’s unwavering commitment to helping Ukraine and to fulfilling its responsibilities for the defense of NATO is truly admirable. #WeAreNATO pic.twitter.com/8nnIQAWBNE
— Secretary of Defense Lloyd J. Austin III (@SecDef) April 20, 2022
“In response to human rights abuses by Russia and Belarus, so this is part of our stepped-up effort to crack down on those attempting to evade our unprecedented sanctions,” White House press secretary Jen Psaki said.
This comes amid an all-out ground offensive in the east as Ukraine continues to hold onto Mariupol despite being outnumbered.
In reports from Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, more than 100,000 people are trapped in the besieged city.
Zelenskyy says they don’t have enough “serious and heavy” weapons to defeat the Kremlin in the key port city and warned if it fell, Russia would have a big advantage in the second phase of their war.
Join millions of voices in a global social media campaign: #ArmUkraineNow
— Володимир Зеленський (@ZelenskyyUa) April 20, 2022
1. Post a picture with a sign saying #ArmUkraineNow
2. Call on your government to provide heavy weapons to Ukraine
3. Tag 3 friends and ask them to do the same
Stand with the Ukrainian people 🇺🇦 pic.twitter.com/sfx96p4cKJ
“What is important to do now is to equip and provide the type of support and assistance, including military equipment, to help them continue to fight and win in some cases in the battle of Kyiv in this war,” Psaki said.
Biden did say he will provide Ukraine with more artillery. In the meantime, his team is debating on what could possibly be in this new package.
