Air defense for Ukraine, F-16 coalition, security agreement: Zelenskyy meets with U.S. Defense Secretary Austin

The President's press service reported the information.

According to Zelenskyy, the key issues he discussed with Austin included Ukraine's defense needs, bolstering the air defense system, the F-16 coalition, and the work on a bilateral security agreement.

The President also thanked his American counterpart Joe Biden for making the decision to launch defensive strikes with American weapons on Russian territory “ to effectively counter Russia's attempts to expand the combat zone.”

“We are very grateful to President Joseph Biden and his administration for their continued assistance in the fight for our freedom and independence,” Zelenskyy emphasized.

• On May 31, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken confirmed that President Joe Biden had secretly authorized Ukraine to strike targets in Russia with US weapons. Ukrainian leader Volodymyr Zelenskyy called the ally's action a “step forward.” At the same time, the representative of the U.S. National Security Council outlined the boundaries within Russian territory covered by the U.S. authorization.