Shmyhal meets with Pentagon chief, calls on U.S. to provide warplanes

At a meeting with U.S. Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin, Ukrainian Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal thanked America for its leadership in defense support and called for providing Ukraine with more weapons, including fighter jets.

The meeting took place at the Pentagon on Wednesday, an Ukrinform correspondent reports.

"The USA is our biggest partner in terms of military support," the Ukrainian Prime Minister stressed at the beginning of the meeting.

He thanked for the allocation of weapons for Ukraine, which strengthened the defense capability of the country. In this regard, Shmyhal particularly noted the provision of modern air defense systems, tanks, artillery and missile systems, as well as armored vehicles for the Armed Forces. The Prime Minister emphasized that the Ukrainian military confirmed the effectiveness of weapons, provided by the U.S. and other partners, on the battlefield.

Shmyhal also stressed that Ukraine must win this war. "But to achieve it faster and with fewer casualties, Ukraine needs more military support," he said.

He noted that the Armed Forces of Ukraine need more air defense systems to minimize the aftermath of Russian airstrikes, more artillery and ammunition.

"I also ask to reconsider the possibility of providing Ukraine with (missile - ed.) systems with a longer range," the Prime Minister noted.

In order to better defend itself and Europe, Ukraine needs more heavy weapons and warplanes, Shmyhal added. In this context, he emphasized that fighter jets would help achieve the advantage and invited the U.S. to join the coalition of countries that announced the transfer of fighter jets to Ukraine.

"America can once again show its leadership by providing Ukraine with F15 or F16 aircraft," the Prime Minister said.

As reported by Ukrinform, Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal arrived in the United States on a visit on Wednesday, April 12. The day before, Denys Shmyhal paid a working visit to Canada. There he met with Prime Minister of Canada Justin Trudeau and Deputy Prime Minister - Minister of Finance of Canada Chrystia Freeland.