| | | BREAKING: JILL BIDEN MAKES SURPRISE VISIT TO UKRAINE AS RUSSIA BOMBS SCHOOL KILLING 60
cnbc.com
UPDATED SUN, MAY 8 20222:39 PM EDT
Jill Biden pays surprise visit to Ukraine; 60 feared dead in Russian bombing of Ukrainian school
U.S. first lady Jill Biden paid a surprise visit to Ukraine and held a Mother’s Day meeting with her Ukrainian counterpart, Olena Zelenskyy.
Biden’s visit comes after recent trips to the country by House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, as well as U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin.
Her visit also comes as dozens are feared dead after reports that a school in the Luhansk region in eastern Ukraine has been hit by Russian shelling. Luhansk is one of the two regions that make up the Donbas, where Russian troops are now concentrating their efforts.
Meanwhile, the last women, children and elderly people have been evacuated from the Azovstal steel plant, the final holdout for Ukrainians in the besieged port city of Mariupol, according to Ukraine’s deputy prime minister.
U.S., G7 will ‘step up’ short-term financial support
The U.S. and the Group of Seven will increase its short-term financial support for Ukraine in the coming weeks, G7 leaders said in a statement.
“We will step up our collective short-term financial support to help Ukraine close financing gaps and deliver basic services to its people, while also developing options – working with the Ukrainian authorities and international financial institutions – to support long-term recovery and reconstruction,” according to the release.
President Joe Biden and leaders of the G7, which consists of the United States, Britain, France, Germany, Japan, Canada and Italy, met virtually with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy earlier in the day.
During the meeting, Zelenskyy stressed the importance for Ukraine “to protect its sovereignty and territorial integrity.”
“In this regard, Ukraine emphasised that it relies on its international partners, in particular on G7 members, in providing necessary assistance in the domain of defense capabilities, as well as with a view to ensuring a swift and effective recovery of Ukraine’s economy and to securing its economic and energy security,” the release said. |
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