Russia warns of WWIII after top US officials visit Kyiv
RUSSIA,UKRAINE: As the Ukraine war entered Day 62 on Tuesday, Russia told the world not to underestimate the risks of nuclear war, which it said it wanted to reduce. Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov on Monday warned that there’s a “serious” danger of nuclear conflict, and said talks with Ukrainian negotiators will continue.
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin pledged more than US$ 700 million in additional military financing for Ukraine and its allies during a trip to Kyiv on Monday, the highest-level visit by American officials since Russia’s invasion. Austin said that Washington’s goal was to see Russia weakened.
Meanwhile, Attacks continued on the Azovstal steel plant in the southeastern port city of Mariupol. Ukraine’s foreign minister on Monday urged the UN chief to press Russia for an evacuation of the besieged port of Mariupol, calling it something the world body is capable of achieving.
An estimated 100,000 people are trapped in the seaside city while a contingent of Ukrainian fighters hold out against Russian forces in a steel mill where hundreds of civilians also are taking shelter.
Nearly five million Ukrainians have fled the country, cities have been shattered and thousands have died since the start of the invasion on February 24.
Meanwhile, Russia has warned the United States against sending more arms to Ukraine, Moscow’s ambassador to Washington told Russian state television.
“We stressed the unacceptability of this situation when the United States of America pours weapons into Ukraine, and we demanded an end to this practice,” Anatoly Antonov said in an interview with the Rossiya 24 TV channel.
Antonov said an official diplomatic note had been sent to Washington expressing Russia’s concerns.
Washington’s top diplomat and its defence secretary met Ukrainian President Volodomyr Zelenskiy in Kyiv late on Sunday, pledging new assistance worth US$713 million (RM3.1 billion) for Zelenskiy’s government and other countries in the region fearing Russian aggression.
Meanwhile, Ukraine’s Foreign Ministry on Monday took to Twitter to hail its four-legged member of the Arms Forces – Patron, the service dog. The ministry said that Patron has so far discovered over 150 explosive devices in the city of Cherchiv since the beginning of the war on February 24.
“Patron is a service dog in Chernihiv. He has discovered over 150 explosive devices in Ukraine since the full scale Russian invasion began. Patron works closely with deminers to make Ukrainian cities safe again. Thank you so much for your service,” the ministry wrote in a tweet with a photo of Patron.
– THE HINDUSTAN TIMES,INDIAN EXPRESS