Blinken promises more aid to Ukraine, Putin offers to negotiate

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Wednesday said the United States would provide $2 billion in additional aid to Kyiv. His announcement came during a joint news conference with Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba. The new aid follows a national security spending package passed last month, providing Ukraine with over $60 billion to assist in its war against Russia.

What’s this about Putin wanting to negotiate? In an interview with Chinese state-run news agency Xinhua, Russian President Vladimir Putin said he was never opposed to negotiating a peace deal in Ukraine. He added that he now wants a comprehensive, peaceful settlement to the war. Putin is scheduled to meet in person with Chinese President Xi Jinping on Thursday.

For more than two years, Russian soldiers have been occupying Ukrainian territory and fighting with Ukrainian forces. The U.S. State Department has reported—with early statements issued just weeks into the war and later with more robust reports—that Russian forces have used air and missile strikes to attack civilian targets in Ukraine. Russian soldiers have also tortured Ukrainian prisoners of war and raped civilians, according to the State Department.

Dig deeper: Read Michael Sobolik’s column in WORLD Opinions asserting that the U.S. is in the middle of a cold war and supplying friendly countries with weapons is the best way to win. Also, read Eric Teetsel’s column countering that argument and saying the U.S. should focus on issues closer to home instead.