Biden calls Germany meeting of Ukraine allies

NEW YORK, United States

United States President, Joe Biden on Thursday announced a series of measures to help Ukraine as it fights the Russian invasion, among other things inviting 50 Kyiv allies to a meeting in Germany next month to coordinate aid.

"I will convene a leader-level meeting of the Ukraine Defense Contact Group in Germany next month to coordinate the efforts of the more than 50 countries supporting Ukraine in its defense against Russian aggression," he said in a statement.

The Ukraine Defense Contact Group is an alliance including all 32 NATO member states and the European Union, among others, that has been holding monthly meetings since mid-2022 to organize military support for Ukraine.

Biden's announcement comes as Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy is in the US, where he will meet on Thursday with the president and Democratic and Republican leaders.

Ahead of his meeting with Zelenskyy, Biden said Washington was providing a "surge" in assistance to Ukraine.

The "surge" includes nearly $8 billion (€7.2 billion) in military aid and new long-range munitions.

"Today, I am announcing a surge in security assistance for Ukraine and a series of additional actions to help Ukraine win this war," Biden said in his statement.

Under his plan, the president said, the US Defense Department would also provide Ukraine with an additional Patriot air defense battery and more Patriot missiles.

Zelenskyy has thanked Biden and the US Congress for the military aid package, saying Ukraine would use it "in the most efficient and transparent manner."

 "I am grateful to the United States for providing the items that are most critical to protecting our people," Zelenskyy said on X, formerly Twitter.

Biden did not, however, make any mention of giving Kyiv permission to fire US long-range missiles into Russia, something that the Ukrainian leadership has been calling for for months. 

The aid does, however, include the first shipment of a precision-guided glide bomb called the Joint Standoff Weapon, with a range of up to 81 miles (130 km). The medium-range missile, which is dropped from fighter jets, represents a major upgrade to the weapons Kyiv is using to strike Russian forces.