Zelensky had been scheduled to appear remotely by video link today, but multiple reports say he will attend the G-7 gathering in person to appeal for additional sanctions against Russia and more advanced weaponry ahead of Ukraine’s planned counteroffensive, which now seems likely to begin in the early summer.
While the U.S. has not budged in its insistence that F-16s would provide little value added in the coming ground campaign, it is now quietly signaling it won’t stand in the way if other countries that have the Lockheed Martin jets in their air forces want to give some to Ukraine. “I think it's a very, very big step and it would give the Ukrainians the chance to have air cover for their counteroffensive so the Russians can't bring an air offensive against them,” said former top NATO commander retired Gen. Wes Clark on CNN. “It would also give them the ability to use standoff weapons to strike behind Russian lines. It's a mobile reserve force.
But through the discovery of an “accounting error,” the Pentagon said it actually has $3 billion more to spend than it thought due a mistake that overvalued the weapons it has sent to Ukraine so far. “These funds could have been used for extra supplies and weapons for the upcoming counteroffensive, instead of rationing funds to last for the remainder of the fiscal year. The Biden Administration must make up for this precious lost time by using these funds to provide Ukraine the DPICMS [cluster munitions] and ATACMS [long-range artillery rockets] they need to fuel the counteroffensive and win the war.
McCaul called off the session after Blinken offered to allow him and Rep. Gregory Meeks , the top Democrat on the committee, to review the July 2021 internal dissent cable, with the names of the signatories blacked out. Washington Post: U.S. officials walk back claim drone strike killed a senior al-Qaeda leader in SyriaBloomberg: Air Force Starts Multibillion-Dollar Contest for New Fighter Jet