Blinken makes unannounced trip to Ukraine, will pledge $2.6 billion in security assistance to region

Secretary of State Antony Blinken arrived successful Ukraine connected Thursday for an undisclosed trip, his 3rd sojourn to the state since Russia launched its penetration successful precocious February.

He landed successful the state aft an overnight formation and met with his counterpart, Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba, conscionable hours aft Ukraine's subject main publically warned of the menace of Russia utilizing atomic weapons successful the conflict.

"Another origin is the direct menace of the usage by Russia, nether definite circumstances, of tactical atomic weapons," Gen. Valeriy Zaluzhnyi said in an article co-authored by lawmaker Mykhailo Zabrodskyi and published by the authorities quality bureau Ukrinform.

Blinken is expected to denote a $675 cardinal drawdown of U.S. arms and instrumentality for Ukraine, a elder Department of State authoritative confirmed. The 20th drawdown since September 2021, which Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin mentioned successful remarks to allies successful Germany earlier Thursday, volition see additional arms, munitions and equipment from U.S. subject inventories.

Blinken is besides readying to denote that the State Department volition notify Congress that it volition marque $2 cardinal disposable successful semipermanent investments to fortify the information of Ukraine and 18 different neighboring countries, including galore NATO allies, the authoritative said.

"In total, the caput volition denote $2.6 cardinal successful further information assistance for Ukraine and its neighbors today. These announcements will bring the total U.S. military assistance for Ukraine to astir $15.2 billion since the opening of this administration," the authoritative said.

Blinken's sojourn comes connected the heels of a telephone past period with Kuleba, successful which helium reinforced U.S. enactment for Ukraine's defence needs. President Joe Biden aboriginal announced a $3 cardinal bundle to bid and equip Ukrainian equipped forces.

Meanwhile, Russian President Vladimir Putin has mocked the West's effect to the war, saying Wednesday that his federation had "not mislaid anything" amid a big of sanctions that targeted elites and services that helped finance the ongoing invasion.

Ukraine besides faces atomic concerns regarding the Zaporizhzhia atomic power plant, Europe's largest.

On Wednesday, Ukraine called for the residents of Russian-occupied areas astir the power plant to evacuate for their ain safety. Moscow and Kyiv have accused each different of shelling the atomic plant, risking a atomic disaster.

Blinken's travel comes astir 4 months aft helium visited Ukraine with Austin. At the time, Blinken said they weren't capable to sojourn overmuch of Kyiv oregon talk to galore radical owed to information concerns.