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Ukraine to Launch Joint Weapons Production with US, Says Zelenskiy 

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy walks down the White House colonnade to the Oval Office with US President Joe Biden during a visit to the White House in Washington, DC, on September 21, 2023. (AFP)
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy walks down the White House colonnade to the Oval Office with US President Joe Biden during a visit to the White House in Washington, DC, on September 21, 2023. (AFP)
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Ukraine to Launch Joint Weapons Production with US, Says Zelenskiy 

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy walks down the White House colonnade to the Oval Office with US President Joe Biden during a visit to the White House in Washington, DC, on September 21, 2023. (AFP)
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy walks down the White House colonnade to the Oval Office with US President Joe Biden during a visit to the White House in Washington, DC, on September 21, 2023. (AFP)

Ukraine and the United States have agreed to launch joint weapons production in a step that will enable Kyiv to start producing air defense systems, President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said on Friday as he wrapped up a visit to the US.

In his daily address to Ukrainians, Zelenskiy said the long-term agreement would create jobs and a new industrial base in Ukraine, whose economy has been devastated by Russia's invasion and war.

"It was a very important visit to Washington, very important results," Zelenskiy said in a video posted on the presidential website on Friday morning.

"And a long-term agreement - we will work together so that Ukraine produces the necessary weapons together with the United States. Co-production in the defense (sector) with the United States is a historic thing."

Kyiv has stepped up efforts to boost domestic weapons production as much as possible because 19 months of war has created a huge demand for arms and ammunition to fend off Russian attacks along a 1,000 km (620 mile) front line. Russian air strikes across Ukraine have caused widespread damage and killed many people.

Zelenskiy said the Ministry for Strategic Industries, which oversees weapons production in Ukraine, had signed cooperation agreements with three associations, uniting over 2,000 defense US companies, on future possible work in Ukraine.

"We are preparing to create a new defense ecosystem with the United States to produce weapons to strengthen further freedom and protect life together," Zelenskiy said without disclosing more details.

Ukraine depends heavily on Western military support. To reduce its dependence, Zelenskiy and his team have been pushing for reforms in the domestic defense industry to modernize local producers and increase supplies to the front.

Zelenskiy has said previously that Kyiv will soon host an international arms production forum, inviting companies from over 20 countries.

The government is also implementing reforms at its main weapons production company - Ukroboronprom - to improve transparency, boost production capacity and enable it to cooperate more actively with Western producers.

Ukraine has already agreed several joint projects with central European producers to repair Ukrainian tanks and other vehicles, and has been working to develop drone and missile production.

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New Orleans Attack Suspect Acted Alone, Supported ISIS, FBI Says

Louisiana National Guard stands guard at a gated off area of the French Quarter near the scene of the car ramming on Bourbon Street in New Orleans, Louisiana, USA, 02 January 2025. (EPA)
Louisiana National Guard stands guard at a gated off area of the French Quarter near the scene of the car ramming on Bourbon Street in New Orleans, Louisiana, USA, 02 January 2025. (EPA)
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New Orleans Attack Suspect Acted Alone, Supported ISIS, FBI Says

Louisiana National Guard stands guard at a gated off area of the French Quarter near the scene of the car ramming on Bourbon Street in New Orleans, Louisiana, USA, 02 January 2025. (EPA)
Louisiana National Guard stands guard at a gated off area of the French Quarter near the scene of the car ramming on Bourbon Street in New Orleans, Louisiana, USA, 02 January 2025. (EPA)

A US Army veteran who drove a truck into a crowd of New Year's Day revelers had pledged allegiance to ISIS, but acted alone in the attack that killed at least 14 people, the FBI said on Thursday.

The suspect, who was shot dead at the scene after firing at police, has been identified as Shamsud-Din Jabbar, a 42-year-old Texan who once served in Afghanistan.

He drove from Houston to New Orleans on Dec. 31, and posted five videos on Facebook between 1.29 a.m. and 3.02 a.m. on the morning of the attack in which he said he supported ISIS, the extremist militant group with fighters in Iraq and Syria, the FBI said.

In the first video, Jabbar explains he had previously planned to harm his family and friends, but was concerned that the media coverage would not focus on the "war between the believers and the disbelievers," FBI Deputy Assistant Director Christopher Raia said at a press conference.

Jabbar also said in the videos that he had joined ISIS before last summer and provided his last will and testament, Raia said.

"This was an act of terrorism," Raia said. "It was premeditated and an evil act."

New Orleans officials said the Sugar Bowl college football game that had been scheduled for Wednesday in a New Year's Day tradition would take place on Thursday afternoon. The city will also host the National Football League's Super Bowl next month.

The FBI said there appeared to be no link between the attack in New Orleans and the episode in Las Vegas on the same day in which a Tesla Cybertruck packed with gasoline canisters and large firework mortars exploded in flames outside the Trump International Hotel in Las Vegas, just weeks before President-elect Donald Trump returns to the White House on Jan. 20.

The injured victims in the New Orleans attack included two police officers wounded by gunfire from the suspect, taking place a mere three hours into the new year on Bourbon Street in the historic French Quarter. At least 15 people were killed, including the suspect, the FBI said.

Among the victims were the mother of a 4-year-old who had just moved into a new apartment after getting a promotion at work, a New York financial employee and accomplished student-athlete who was visiting home for the holidays, and an 18-year-old aspiring nurse from Mississippi.

Witnesses described a horrifying scene.

"There were people everywhere," Kimberly Strickland of Mobile, Alabama, said in an interview. "You just heard this squeal and the rev of the engine and this huge loud impact and then the people screaming and debris - just metal - the sound of crunching metal and bodies."

Meanwhile, authorities in other US cities said they had boosted security, including at Trump Tower and Times Square in New York City, adding that there were no immediate threats.

In Washington, police also said they had increased their presence as the capital prepares to host three major events this month: Congress' Jan. 6 certification of US President-elect Donald Trump's presidential election win, the Jan. 9 state funeral for former President Jimmy Carter, and Trump's Jan. 20 inauguration.

The FBI said an ISIS flag was found on the trailer hitch of the rented vehicle involved in the New Orleans attack.

US President Joe Biden condemned what he called a "despicable" act.

Public records showed Jabbar worked in real estate in Houston. In a promotional video posted four years ago, Jabbar described himself as born and raised in Beaumont, a city about 80 miles (130 km) east of Houston.

Jabbar was in the regular Army from March 2007 until January 2015 and then in the Army Reserve from January 2015 until July 2020, an Army spokesperson said. He deployed to Afghanistan from February 2009 to January 2010 and held the rank of staff sergeant at the end of service.