Ukraine maintains a lot of combat capability and power to carry out a counteroffensive despite its preliminary losses, US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said on Thursday following his meeting with the Ukrainian defense minister at the NATO headquarters.
“This is a war, so we know that there will be battle damage on both sides”, Austin said during a press conference following the Ukraine Defense Contact Group.
Ukrainian Defense Minister Oleksii Reznikov and Ukrainian military leaders briefed allies and partners on the situation and military needs.
Russian President Vladimir Putin affirmed that his forces defied the attack and that the Ukrainian losses were "catastrophic."
Moscow announced capturing several German-made Leopard battle tanks and US-made Bradley infantry fighting vehicles.
“I think the Russians have shown us [those] same five vehicles about 1,000 times from 10 different angles,” Austin said of the video clips. “But quite frankly, the Ukrainians still have a lot of combat capability, combat power,” he said.
He stressed Kyiv’s ability to "repair damaged equipment".
“So, we will continue to provide Ukraine with the urgent capabilities that it needs to meet this moment,“ Austin added.
“It’s a very violent fight, and it will likely take a considerable amount of time,” US Army General Mark Milley, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said.
“Armored vehicles, anti-tank weapons, and ammo. This is what we need to protect our land and help the Russians to find their way home,” Reznikov noted in a tweet.
The US announced a new $325 million military aid package for Ukraine that will include ammunition and vehicles. Germany, the UK, Poland, Canada, Denmark, Netherlands, Norway, and Italy announced contributions as well.
Reznikov welcomed commitments by Denmark and the Netherlands coalition to train Ukrainian pilots on American-made F-16 fighters. The training is scheduled for the summer, but it will take some time, according to Austin.
