26th February, 2022
At least 198 Ukrainians, including three children, have been killed as a result of the Russian invasion of Ukraine, the head of the Ukrainian Health Ministry told Interfax news agency.
He said 1,115 people were wounded, including 33 children.
It was unclear whether he was referring only to civilian casualties.
As Russian forces continue to pound the Capital Kiev, the Ukrainian government is set to receive more defensive weapons from at least four countries.
The Czech government approved on Saturday sending weapons and ammunition worth 188 million crowns ($8.57 million) to help Ukraine defend itself against Russia’s attack, the Czech Defence Ministry said.
The shipment, which includes machine guns, assault rifles and other light weapons, will be delivered by the Czech side to a location picked by Ukraine, the ministry said.
“Our help is not over!” the ministry said on Twitter.
France has also decided to send defensive military equipment to Ukraine to support the country against Russia’s invasion, a French army spokesman said on Saturday.
He said the issue of sending offensive arms was still under consideration.
“You can imagine that shipping the equipment is complicated at the moment”, a spokesman for the French army’s Chief of Staff told reporters at a briefing.
France also promised to provide defensive equipment to Ukraine, French President Emmanuel Macron said in a written speech to the country’s two legislative bodies Friday.
The speech did not detail what the equipment would be.
Macron wrote that France will provide Ukraine with a “additional budgetary assistance of 300 million euros” and “will provide the defensive material they need.”
France has not previously provided arms to Ukraine but has provided humanitarian aid and budgetary support.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has appealed for citizens to take up arms against Russian troops and have been distributing guns and ammunition to reservists.