Yermak in Washington discussed the counteroffensive, plans for the winter and the needs of the Ukrainian military

The head of the Office of the President of Ukraine, Andriy Yermak, discussed how the counteroffensive and the prospects of the war are going as the winter months approach at a closed meeting with White House National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan.

This was reported by the strategic communication coordinator of the US National Security Council in a comment to Voice of America John Kirby. According to him, this meeting is a continuation of the cooperation between the two officials that has been ongoing since the beginning of the full-scale invasion.

“This is another opportunity for them to talk about how the United States will continue to support Ukraine, how we will continue to talk to members of Congress about the importance of continuing to support Ukraine, and about the request for additional funding that the president has submitted [США], in particular, to provide security assistance. But it’s also an opportunity to get an insight from Mr. Yermak about how the counteroffensive is going, what’s happening on the battlefield, what their needs are, and what they think their prospects are going forward as the winter months approach,” said John Kirby.

On the same day, Monday, November 13, at a meeting with the US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken, the Ukrainian delegation discussed the situation at the front and the urgent needs of the Armed Forces, in particular, in air defense equipment.

As Andriy Yermak himself reported, the parties touched on the expected increase in Russian shelling of Ukraine’s energy infrastructure this winter.

“We really need air defense and anti-missile defense systems that will protect Ukrainian cities, key critical infrastructure facilities, as well as grain corridor routes,” Andriy Yermak said.

Deputy Secretary of State for Political Affairs Victoria Nuland and Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for Eastern Europe Chris Smith also took part in the meeting with the Ukrainian delegation.

The Ukrainian delegation, headed by the First Vice Prime Minister and Minister of Economy of Ukraine Yulia Svyridenko, also discussed with their American colleagues the conclusion of a bilateral agreement between Ukraine and the USA on security guarantees for the implementation of the G7 joint declaration on support for Ukraine, which the leaders of the seven countries signed in Vilnius on 12 July They also considered the issue of sanctions against the Russian Federation and the mechanism for directing frozen Russian assets to the reconstruction of Ukraine.

Among other things, Minister Svyridenko met on Monday with the American Development Finance Corporation, where she discussed how to ensure private investment in Ukraine.

On Tuesday, Voice of America was told, Ukrainian officials have scheduled meetings with US congressmen and senators to persuade them to vote on a package of bills to finance aid to Israel and Ukraine.

The visit of the Ukrainian delegation to the USA takes place on the eve of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation Leaders’ Week in San Francisco, where US President Joe Biden will meet with Chinese President Xi Jinping and other leaders of the Global South to discuss the global security architecture.