Speaking at a conference in Brussels, U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin on Thursday praised Ukrainian “resilience” as senior Pentagon officials said they expect a lengthy and “very violent” fight during Ukraine’s counteroffensive to drive out Russian troops.
Austin said military equipment and training would continue to flow, ensuring that Kyiv can “prevail over [Russian President Vladimir] Putin’s campaign of cruelty and conquest.” He also met with his Ukrainian counterpart at a meeting of the Ukraine Defense Contact Group, which includes ministers from almost 50 countries assisting Kyiv’s war efforts. “Ukraine’s fight is a marathon and not a sprint,” Austin noted in his opening remarks.
Here’s the latest on the war and its impact across the globe.
The Australian government passed legislation June 15 to prevent Russia from building a new embassy near Parliament House, citing national security concerns. (Video: Reuters)
Zaporizhzhia steel plant refuses to bend to Russian attacks: Workers at a steel plant near the front lines of a counteroffensive in southeastern Ukraine aren’t cowed by the air raid sirens that regularly sound as they work with molten metal at temperatures up to 1,100 degrees Celsius, The Post’s Adam Taylor reports.
“People just adapted,” 29-year-old Oleksii Klashnik said. He and other steelworkers wore protective vests along with their heatproof outfits. The plant has never been hit, Klashnik added, but “you can definitely hear the explosions in the city.”
David Stern contributed to this report.
