Washington: In preparation for upcoming meetings of Kyiv's allies in Brussels, US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin and Ukrainian Defense Minister Oleksii Reznikov discussed "priorities," including air defense and artillery, both parties said late on Saturday.

President Volodymyr Zelensky and other officials in Kiev have been pleading with allies to send fighter aircraft after securing a promise of a large number of contemporary battle tanks, including the US M1 Abrams, German Leopard 2, and British Challenger 2.

Following a meeting on January 20 at the Ramstein Air Base in Germany that played a significant role in the decision to send tanks, the Ukraine Defense Contact Group will convene on Tuesday at the NATO headquarters.

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According to a statement from the Pentagon's top spokesman, Brig. Gen. Patrick Ryder, Austin and Reznikov discussed the significance of delivering promised capabilities as soon as possible.

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Reznikov tweeted after the call that the two also discussed the situation on the front lines and that "the United States is unwavering in its support of Ukraine."

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