Trump: US to Increase Weapons Aid to Ukraine

• Kyiv has confirmed a drone strike on a Russian ammunition factory.
• Russia claims to have taken control of the village of Dachne in Dnipropetrovsk.
• Kyiv is concerned about a potential reduction in US support following Trump’s return to the White House.

KYIV: President Donald Trump announced on Monday that the United States will provide additional military aid to Ukraine, responding to recent advances made by Russia in its ongoing conflict with the country.

This announcement came after Washington disclosed last week that it would pause certain arms shipments to Kyiv, leaving Ukrainian officials in a state of uncertainty.

This halt could pose a significant challenge for Ukraine, which is facing some of the heaviest missile and drone offensives from Russia during the more than three-year conflict.

“We will be sending more defensive weapons,” Trump told reporters at the White House. “They are under intense attack,” he said of Ukraine, while also expressing discontent with Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Putin initiated a full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022 and has shown little interest in ceasing hostilities despite pressure from Trump.

Trump’s commitment to delivering more military equipment to Ukraine follows Russia’s claim of having captured its first village in the Dnipropetrovsk region after months of advances.

Prior to the announcement, Russia launched another wave of drone and missile strikes, targeting Ukraine’s military recruitment centers.

Ukraine also reported a drone strike on a Russian munitions factory located in the Moscow area.

Challenging Conditions

Russia stated that its forces had taken over the village of Dachne in the Dnipropetrovsk region, an area crucial for its industrial mining that has been subjected to increasing air assaults from Russia.

Last month, Moscow claimed its troops had breached the border into the Dnipropetrovsk region for the first time in their campaign.

In recent months, Russian forces appear to regard crossing into this region as a strategic priority, and deeper incursions could lead to logistical and economic difficulties for Ukraine.

So far, Kyiv has denied the presence of any Russian troops in Dnipropetrovsk.

The Ukrainian military reported earlier on Monday that its forces had “repelled” assaults in Dnipropetrovsk, including near Dachne.

Dnipropetrovsk is not one of the five Ukrainian territories—Donetsk, Kherson, Lugansk, Zaporizhzhia, and Crimea—that Moscow has publicly annexed.

Describing the situation in Dnipropetrovsk as “challenging,” military analyst Oleksiy Kopytko noted that Russia seems poised to establish a buffer zone in the area. “Our troops are holding their positions fairly well,” he informed AFP.

Relying on Allies

Last week, the White House indicated it was suspending certain significant arms supplies to Ukraine that had been established under Trump’s predecessor, Joe Biden, without specifying which programs would be impacted.

This decision was made following a review of America’s defense needs and its military assistance to other countries.

Kyiv has long feared interruptions to US support since Trump’s return to office in January, particularly given his criticisms of the significant financial and military aid provided by Biden.

During Biden’s presidency, the US committed over $65 billion in military assistance to Ukraine.

Since resuming his term, Trump has not announced any new military aid packages for Kyiv. Instead, he has advocated for initiating peace talks between the two parties, including phone conversations with Putin. Nevertheless, the Russian leader has dismissed requests for a ceasefire, insisting that Ukraine must concede more territory to conclude the conflict.

Before Trump’s comments on Monday, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky emphasized that air defense remained the “highest priority for saving lives,” urging partners to fulfill their commitments.

Explosions were reported overnight on Tuesday in the southern Ukrainian city of Mykolaiv, as Mayor Oleksandr Senkevych mentioned on Telegram that the “danger of drone attacks” persists.

Mykolaiv’s regional governor, Vitaliy Kim, reported a fire outbreak in the outskirts of the city due to shelling, which resulted in injuries to a 51-year-old man.