US Secretary Of State And Secretary Of Defense Visit Kyiv, Ukraine Asks For Heavy Weapons: Anti-missile To Tank

US Secretary of Defense Austin with Foreign Minister Blinken. (Wikimedia Commons/US Department of State)

JAKARTA - Ukraine will ask United States Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin, for more powerful weapons during a visit on Sunday, to build up the country's defenses against a Russian invasion.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said his country would overcome "dark times," in an emotional speech at Kyiv's 1.000-year-old Saint Sophia Cathedral to mark Orthodox Easter as fighting in eastern Ukraine overshadows religious celebrations.

The trips by Secretary of State Blinken and Secretary of Defense Austin, previously announced by President Zelensky, will be the highest-level visit to Ukraine by a US official since Russian President Vladimir Putin ordered the invasion of the country two months ago.

The White House has not confirmed the visit of Secretary of State Blinken and Secretary of Defense Austin. Meanwhile, both the State Department and the Pentagon declined to comment.

"We are inspired by the resilience of Orthodox Christians in Ukraine in the face of President Putin's brutal war of aggression," Blinken said on Twitter.

"We continue to support them and, today, we wish them and everyone else celebrating Easter wishes and a speedy return to peace."

Ukrainian officials plan to inform Blinken and Austin of the urgent need for more weapons, including anti-missile systems, anti-aircraft systems, armored vehicles, and tanks, Zelenskiy aide Igor Zhovkva told NBC News on Sunday.

The United States and its NATO allies have shown increased readiness to supply heavier equipment and more sophisticated weapons systems. The UK has pledged to send military vehicles and is considering supplying British tanks to Poland to liberate the Russian-designed Warsaw T-72s for Ukraine.

It is known that after the Ukrainian defenses forced Russia to withdraw from the vicinity of Kyiv, Moscow's attacks are now focused on the eastern and southern Donbas regions of the country.

With normal life returning to the capital, several countries have reopened embassies in recent days and some residents who fled the fighting are returning for Easter.