Al Mayadeen English

  • Ar
  • Es
  • x
Al Mayadeen English

Slogan

  • News
    • Politics
    • Economy
    • Sports
    • Arts&Culture
    • Health
    • Miscellaneous
    • Technology
    • Environment
  • Articles
    • Opinion
    • Analysis
    • Blog
    • Features
  • Videos
    • NewsFeed
    • Video Features
    • Explainers
    • TV
    • Digital Series
  • Infographs
  • In Pictures
  • • LIVE
News
  • Politics
  • Economy
  • Sports
  • Arts&Culture
  • Health
  • Miscellaneous
  • Technology
  • Environment
Articles
  • Opinion
  • Analysis
  • Blog
  • Features
Videos
  • NewsFeed
  • Video Features
  • Explainers
  • TV
  • Digital Series
Infographs
In Pictures
  • Africa
  • Asia
  • Asia-Pacific
  • Europe
  • Latin America
  • MENA
  • Palestine
  • US & Canada
BREAKING
The Mujahideen Movement: The two were killed along with dozens of others from their family in a cowardly Zionist assassination that targeted the Sabra neighborhood today
The Palestinian Mujahideen Movement mourns the martyrdom of its Secretary-General, Asaad Attiya Abu Sharia "Abu Al-Sheikh", along with his brother Ahmad
Abu Zaid: I believe that the Iranian operation was multi-layered, combining cyber and electronic attacks with coordinated on-the-ground infiltrations by agents
Abu Zaid: Usually, archives of such sensitivity are typically protected by a full-scale security system, but it appears that Iranian intelligence managed to make use of a gap in it
Strategic military expert Nidal Abu Zaid: Iran has stripped "Israel" of the superiority and deterrence long boasted by its security minister, chief of staff, and other top officials
Fallahpour: Iran may use these documents in its battle with the United States and Western countries over its nuclear program
Fallahpour: Iran may have obtained additional documents related to "Israel's" regional projects, not just its nuclear program
Fallahpour: The coming weeks will be full of surprises, as Iran has forced Israeli intelligence agencies into a state of psychological exhaustion
Al Mayadeen's correspondent in Tehran, Siavash Fallahpour: Iran has redefined the concept of deterrence, shifting it away from traditional military balance toward a new strategic framework
Sources to Al Mayadeen: Number of documents so great that merely studying them, along with accompanying images and footage will require a great deal of time.

Blinken expected to announce billion dollars in aid for Ukraine

  • By Al Mayadeen English
  • Source: Agencies
  • 6 Sep 2023 14:41
  • 2 Shares
4 Min Read

US State Secretary Antony Blinken is expected to announce a billion dollars in aid for Ukraine as the country continues to falter on the frontlines in its much-touted counteroffensive.

  • x
  • Ukrainian  Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba, right, and US Secretary of State Antony Blinken, give a statement to media ahead of their meeting at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, in Kiev, Ukraine, Sept. 6, 2023 (AFP)
    Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba, right, and US Secretary of State Antony Blinken, give a statement to media ahead of their meeting at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, in Kiev, Ukraine, Sept. 6, 2023 (AFP)

US State Secretary Antony Blinken on Wednesday arrived in Ukraine on an unannounced visit. He is expected to announce more than a billion dollars in fresh aid for Kiev as Washington continues upping its expenditure for Ukraine.

Blinken landed in Kiev as the government claims to have made some advances against Russia's forces in the east after struggling for months to gain any ground.

"We expect the secretary to be able to announce more than a billion dollars in new US funding for Ukraine during the course of this visit," a senior US State Department official said en route to Kiev.

Check out: How much aid has the US sent to Ukraine?

Blinken was greeted by US Ambassador Bridget Brink upon his arrival in the Ukrainian capital.

The visit comes at a time when Ukraine is changing its strategy on the battlefield, which the State Department official claimed was a "good time" for Blinken to come, months into Kiev's counter-offensive and as energy security fears are on the rise again.

Some reports claim that the Ukrainian counteroffensive has been moving along more quickly lately and achieved some notable victories. The White House's spokesperson, John Kirby, lauded the Ukrainian troops' "notable progress" during the previous 72 hours in a southern offensive near the Zaporizhzhia area after they allegedly took over the village of Robotyne last week. 

Related News

Terrorists in Syria's Aleppo attack dormitory, kill 4 students

Former UK SecDef urges Ukraine to conscript more 'young blood'

Read next: Ukraine’s counteroffensive is 'running back into stalemate': Reports

Oleksandr Tarnavskiy, a brigadier general in the Ukrainian army, claimed over the weekend that his nation's forces had successfully breached Russia's first defensive line near Zaporizhzhia and that Moscow had only devoted 20% of its time and resources to each of the second and third lines.

While the recent news seems to be in favor of Ukraine, it appears that its supporters are working on keeping expectations in check rather than boosting them.

Read: US expects Ukraine counteroffensive not to meet goals: WashPo

The counterattack by Ukraine has been moving slowly for a variety of reasons, not the least of which is the size of the task. Former British general Sir Richard Barrons pointed out that progress has been made in the south this summer, but there are still 55 miles to go before Ukraine reaches its much-touted aim of reaching the Sea of Azov and severing the land bridge to Crimea. 

The well-established and extensive network of Russian defenses, including minefields, anti-tank ditches, and "Dragon's Teeth" barricades, have also forced Ukrainian forces to engage in combat, UnHerd reported.

Oleksii Reznikov, the recently ousted defense minister of Ukraine, lamented the presence of up to five Russian mines per square meter of land. This has considerably slowed down Ukrainian forces' advancement; according to Tarnavskiy, minefields have been impeding Ukrainian forces for weeks as infantry sappers tried to clear an attack route on foot while Russian forces used drones and shells to target vehicles. 

That is prior to discussing difficulties with the availability of ammunition and training. The US won't begin training F-16 fighter jet pilots until October, and according to Troels Poulsen, the acting defense minister of Denmark, Ukraine won't see results until the beginning of next year. Ukrainian soldiers have reported crippling disconnects between NATO drills and the realities of the front lines, despite the fact that 63,000 of their soldiers have participated in training in NATO countries due to time constraints.

It is worth noting that despite the fact that Ukraine's counteroffensive is moving more slowly than anticipated, Ukraine continues to reject the option of freezing the battle.

  • counteroffensive
  • Russia
  • Kiev
  • Ukraine
  • Antony Blinken

Most Read

Lebanon's PM Nawaf Salam meets with US envoy Morgan Ortagus in Beirut on April 5, 2025 (Dalati Nohra via AP)AP)

Morgan Ortagus to exit US role in Lebanon amid policy shift

  • Politics
  • 1 Jun 2025
A Palestinian woman mourns as she embraces the body of her daughter Mayar Abu Odeh, 8, who was killed in an Israeli army strike on Gaza. at Al-Shifa Hospital in Gaza City, Wednesday, June 4, 2025. (AP)

French port workers block arms shipment to 'Israel' amid Gaza genocide

  • Politics
  • 4 Jun 2025
The logo of the Iranian Ministry of Intelligence (wikidata)

Iran acquired thousands of sensitive Israeli documents: Exclusive

  • Politics
  • 7 Jun 2025
New Syrian group claims Golan strike, vows resistance to 'Israel'

New Syrian group claims Golan strike, vows resistance to 'Israel'

  • Politics
  • 4 Jun 2025

Coverage

All
War on Gaza

Read Next

All
https://english.almayadeen.net/news/politics/pentagon-chief--nato-likely-to-back-trump-s-5--defence-spend
Politics

Europe spent $3 trillion on defense, but got little in return - FT

Power, parties, and scandal: Trump’s ties to Epstein: Telegraph
Europe

Power, parties, and scandal: Trump’s ties to Epstein - The Telegraph

Eilat port as seen from the sea, occupied Palestine, March 12 2009 (wikimedia commons)
Politics

YAF operations forced 80% plunge in Eilat port revenues in 2024

EU backs International Criminal Court after US sanctions judges
Europe

EU backs International Criminal Court after US sanctions judges

Al Mayadeen English

Al Mayadeen is an Arab Independent Media Satellite Channel.

All Rights Reserved

  • x
  • Privacy Policy
  • About Us
  • Contact Us
  • Authors
Android
iOS