Kyiv appears to be optimistic that its Western allies will grant its requests for fighter jets. “Let’s wait and see. That’s what we heard about tanks,” Vadym Prystaiko, Ukraine’s ambassador to Britain, told the BBC on Sunday, referring to apprehension from military backers before an agreement on tanks was made. The comments came after Poland’s president cast doubt on sending Ukraine F-16s.
On the battlefield, Russia is reinforcing its troops around Lyman and Bakhmut, the center of some of the bloodiest fighting in recent months, according to Ukraine’s armed forces. In a Sunday update, they said Russia is continuing to focus its offensive efforts in the area, including with airstrikes on troop positions. The commander of Ukraine’s military, Gen. Valery Zaluzhny, said Ukrainian troops are holding their ground in Bakhmut “despite constant enemy pressure.”
Here’s the latest on the war and its ripple effects across the globe.
4. From our correspondents
Biden will “make it very clear that the United States will continue to stand with Ukraine for as long as it takes,” John Kirby, the National Security Council spokesman, told reporters ahead of the Feb. 20-22 visit.
