Ukraine asks Australia for ‘heavy weapons’ in conflict with Russia

The Ukraine has asked Australia for ‘heavy weapons’ in its continuing conflict with invading Russian forces.

Ukraine has asked Australia for more “heavy weapons” in its fight against invading Russian forces.

Ukraine foreign affairs Minister Dmytro Kuleba revealed on Twitter he had spoken to Foreign Affairs Minister Penny Wong to thank Australia for its “outstanding support of Ukraine, including military and humanitarian aid”.

In a message posted overnight, he said his country had requested more heavy weapons as fighting intensified in the country’s east.

“Requested additional heavy weapons and proposed to include Ukraine into Australian Generalized System of Tariff Preferences to bolster Ukraine’s economy,” Mr Kuleba said in the post.

Ms Wong’s office has been contacted for comment.

Spoke with @SenatorWong to thank Australia for its outstanding support of Ukraine, including military and humanitarian aid. Requested additional heavy weapons and proposed to include Ukraine into Australian Generalized System of Tariff Preferences to bolster Ukraine’s economy.

— Dmytro Kuleba (@DmytroKuleba) May 31, 2022

US president Joe Biden said on Monday he would not send rocket systems to Ukraine that could hit targets well inside Russian territory, despite urgent requests from Kyiv for long-range weapons.

“We are not going to send to Ukraine rocket systems that can strike into Russia,” Biden told reporters in Washington.

Kyiv has asked the United States for mobile batteries of long-range rockets, the M270 MLRS and the M142 Himars, which can launch multiple rockets at the same time with a range of up to 187 miles (300 kilometers), eight times or more the distance of artillery in the field.

A red poppy flower stands in front of a destroyed residential building in Mariupol on Tuesday amid the ongoing military action in Ukraine. Photo: AFP

The MLRS “is really the weapon that we badly need,” Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba said last week at the World Economic Forum in the Swiss Alps, where he pressed Western allies for heavy weapons.

“If the west really wants Ukraine’s victory, maybe it is time to give us long-range MLRS,” posted Mr Zelensky’s adviser Mykhailo Podoliak on Twitter on Sunday.

“It is hard to fight when you are attacked from a 70km distance and have nothing to fight back with.”

In May, the US announced an extra $40 billion of military support for Ukraine.

Locals examine a destroyed Russian tank outside Kyiv on Tuesday. Photo: Dimitar DILKOFF / AFP