Nato to deliver more military aid to Ukraine after Dutch minister announces deal
'Packages will be prepared rapidly and issued on a regular basis,' a Nato spokesperson said.
Air defence systems are in greatest need, as the United Nations said that Russia's relentless pounding of urban areas behind the front line has killed more than 12,000 Ukrainian civilians.
Russia's bigger army is also making slow but costly progress along the 620-mile front line. Currently, it is waging an operation to take the eastern city of Pokrovsk, a logistical hub whose fall could allow it to drive deeper into Ukraine.
European allies and Canada are buying most of the equipment which they plan to send from the United States, which has greater stocks of military material, as well as more effective weapons. The Trump administration is not giving any arms to Ukraine.
The new deliveries will come on top of other pledges of military equipment.
The Kiel Institute, which tracks support to Ukraine, estimates that as of June, European countries had provided 72 billion euros (£63bn) worth of military aid since the start of Russia's full-scale invasion in February 2022, compared to 65 billion dollars (£49bn) in US aid.
Dutch defence minister Ruben Brekelmans said that 'American air defence systems and munitions, in particular, are crucial for Ukraine to defend itself'.
Announcing the deliveries on Monday, he said Russia's attacks are 'pure terror, intended to break Ukraine'.
Germany said on Friday that it will deliver two more Patriot air defence systems to Ukraine in the coming days.
It agreed to the move after securing assurances that the US will prioritise the delivery of new Patriots to Germany to backfill its stocks. These weapon systems are only made in the US.
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The Guardian
8 minutes ago
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At least five officers end up pushing Martinez to the ground and grabbing him by the neck as they force him into their car, the footage shows. Essayli, the US attorney, posted Martinez's photo on social media the following day, saying he was arrested for 'punching a border patrol agent in the face'. The footage does not show him punching an officer. Essayli's office did not, however, charge Martinez with assault, but rather 'conspiracy to impede a federal officer'. The justice department complaint included no reference to punching. Still, Greg Bovino, border patrol chief for parts of southern California, falsely claimed on that Martinez 'caught a federal case for assault'. Essayli's office did not respond to inquiries about Martinez's case. 'I just wanted to speak up for that guy, it was not right, it was like they were kidnapping him,' Martinez told the Guardian. 'What they were doing was wrong. They were bothering a poor old man who was just working … I was just using words and they started attacking me.' Martinez was taken to a parking structure by the federal jail where, he said, he was held for hours. Officers would not let him call his mother, he said. 'They were not believing me when I said I was a US citizen.' He said he was most worried about his family not knowing his whereabouts and anxious about his father's car, which he left at work. When officers interrogated him at the parking structure, they tried to get him to admit to assault, he said. 'I never put my hands on anybody. Why is my own government lying saying I tried to assault someone? It's scary.' Martinez's knee, shoulders and back were injured and bruised from the arrest, made worse by sleeping on a metal bed in jail for three days, he added. Weeks after the incident, KCAL News reported that one of the border patrol agents involved in Martinez's arrest, Isaiah Hodgson, had himself been arrested. 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Ciaran McEvoy, a US attorney's office spokesperson, pointed to an post from Essayli defending the 'great work being done by our amazing federal prosecutors'. His office has filed more than 50 criminal complaints since early June against people accused of assaulting or interfering with immigration officers, and nine of those people have since been indicted by grand juries, Essayli wrote. McEvoy declined to provide a full list of the cases. Essayli's post added: 'When there are reactive arrests, like we had during the riots, it's not uncommon for a complaint to be dismissed so that law enforcement can conduct additional investigation and collect more evidence.' The US attorney general, Pam Bondi, defended Essayli in a statement, calling him a 'friend' and 'champion for law and order who has done superlative work to prosecute rioters' in LA. And Tricia McLaughlin, DHS assistant secretary, added in an email: 'Our agents, officers, and prosecutors will continue to work together to keep Americans safe, and we will follow the facts, evidence, and law.' Even though Martinez never faced assault charges, Walmart terminated him after his arrest, citing 'gross misconduct', records show. He has remained out of work and anxious about his future while the charges loom. Walmart declined to comment. He had hoped to get his truck driving license, but now is unsure if he can. Garrett Miller, one of his attorneys, condemned the US attorney and border patrol officials for making false punching allegations about Martinez and never correcting them: 'They used their platforms for political gain, at Adrian's expense, and he lost his job because of it.' Injuries sustained during his arrest forced Martinez to wear a leg brace for weeks after and he still has pain when he walks, he says. Despite the government crackdown, he said he hoped people continue to 'speak out when something is not right'. After her charges were dismissed, Velez felt some relief, but she said she was still riddled with fear that Ice could target her. She was also shaken by images of the vendors and workers who she saw being detained for deportation: 'These were people just heading into work, going about their days. We don't know where they were being taken, and it just broke my heart that they may never see their families again.' Velez has been working remotely since her arrest, terrified of returning to downtown. She does virtual therapy, no longer goes on morning runs and never leaves home by herself: 'I don't feel safe knowing they can randomly attack and take you.'
The Independent
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