Zelenskyy says US sec’y of state, Pentagon chief to visit Ukraine

Kyiv, Apr 23 (EFE).- Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Saturday that he will meet here Sunday with US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin.

“I don’t think this is a secret that people from the US are coming to us tomorrow, State Secretary Mr. Blinken and the Defense Secretary (Lloyd Austin) who are coming to us,” Zelenskyy told a news conference in an underground subway station in Kyiv.

“We will be expecting, when the security will allow, the president of the United States to come and to talk to us,” the Ukrainian leader added.

US President Joe Biden has expressed a desire to go to Ukraine and said that was considering sending a senior official to Kyiv, but Washington said nothing Saturday about an impending visit by Blinken and Austin, who would be the highest-ranking Americans to travel to Ukraine since the start of the Russian invasion on Feb. 24.

Zelenskyy said that he planned to ask the US officials to provide Ukraine with more powerful weapons and to deliver them at a faster pace.

“As soon as there are enough of them (weapons), believe me, we will immediately retake this or that territory, which is temporarily occupied,” he said.

“Tomorrow we will discuss this exact list of weapons that are essential for us and the pace of deliveries,” Zelenskyy said. “We expect this. We would like to have … powerful heavy weapons.”

EFE

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