Source: ABC News

October 21, 2024, 3:35 AM

LONDON -- Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin arrived in Kyiv, Ukraine, on Monday morning for his third visit to the country since Russia's full-scale invasion began in 2022.

The Pentagon said in a statement that Austin "will meet with Ukrainian leadership and underscore the U.S. commitment to providing Ukraine with the security assistance it needs to defend itself from Russian aggression on the battlefield."

Austin will end his fourth visit to Ukraine as defense secretary with an address on Kyiv's successes, American commitment to supplying its troops and -- with just over two weeks until the U.S. presidential election -- "why Ukraine's fight matters for U.S. security," the Pentagon said.

A senior defense official told ABC News that Austin's visit is intended as an opportunity to consider the overall status of the war, plus to underscore the U.S. role in defeating Moscow's strategic objectives and inflicting "astronomical casualties" on Russian forces.

Read more: https://abcnews.go.com/International/lloyd-austin-visits-ukraine-zelensky-warns-clear-north/story?id=114980773