Ukraine receives U.S. air defense system

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Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskiy addresses Ukrainians about the prisoners of war (POWs) swap, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, in Kyiv Ukraine, in this handout picture released September 22, 2022. Ukrainian Presidential Press Service/Handout via REUTERS

Sept 25 (Reuters) - President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said in an interview broadcast on Sunday that Ukraine had received sophisticated air defence systems from the United States.

It was the first acknowledgment that Ukraine had received the National Advanced Surface-to-Air Missile System (NASAMS), long sought by Kyiv and whose shipment was approved by Washington late last month.

"We absolutely need the United States to show leadership and give Ukraine the air defence systems. I want to thank President (Joe) Biden for a positive decision that has been already made," Zelenskiy said, according to an English-language transcript of the interview.

"But believe me, it's not even nearly enough to cover the civilian infrastructure, schools, hospitals, universities, homes of Ukrainians."

Zelenskiy also thanked the United States for HIMARS and other multiple rocket-launching systems enabling Ukraine to advance against Russian occupying forces.

Ukraine has staged counter-offensives this month to free from occupation large swathes of territory in northeastern Kharkiv region. It has also made advances in the south.

Russia describes its seven-month-old incursion into Ukraine as a "special military operation" and denies it targets civilian sites.

Reporting by Ron Popeski; Editing by Lisa Shumaker

Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

VegasKL on September 26th, 2022 at 01:16 UTC »

Curious they announce this a few days after a bunch of jets go down in Ukraine, some even in the same area (right behind eachother).

I'm thinking they arrived a few weeks ago, and figured the Russian's have realized that there's something newer on the field so why not announce it.

hobokobo1028 on September 25th, 2022 at 20:02 UTC »

When Russia can’t win on the battlefield, they bomb civilian centers. This helps deter those actions.

quikfrozt on September 25th, 2022 at 19:31 UTC »

This war has turned out to be a fabulous ad for America weapons and a terrible show for Russian ones.