U.S. seeks 'just and lasting peace' for Ukraine, U.S. Secretary of State Blinken says

U.S. seeks 'just and lasting peace' for Ukraine, U.S. Secretary of State Blinken says

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said in Helsinki, Finland, on Friday (June 2) that the United States is working with Ukraine and other allies to build consensus around the core elements of a "just and lasting peace" to end the war with Russia.

Washington would also encourage initiatives by other countries to end the conflict, as long as they upheld the United Nations Charter and Ukraine's sovereignty, territorial integrity and independence, he said in a speech during a visit to Finland, the newest member of the NATO alliance.

Blinken said Washington would continue to support Ukraine militarily and help it to build a “military of the future” with modern equipment and defenses, calling Russia’s invasion a strategic failure.

The top U.S. diplomat has been visiting Finland, Norway and Sweden this week. The Nordic region has become strategically more important, with previously non-aligned Finland joining the Western military alliance and Sweden seeking to join it too.

Ukraine fended off 36 Russian air attacks in and around the capital overnight while pro-Kyiv Russian fighters said they were battling Russian forces for a second day inside Russia, trading blame with Moscow for the deaths of two civilians.

Russia has launched about 20 waves of attacks on Kyiv since the beginning of May, a surge in strikes that the government says appears aimed at derailing Ukraine's preparations for a major counter-offensive to try to end Russia's invasion.

Russian officials reported cross-border shelling from several areas of northern Ukraine on Friday in the latest sign that Kyiv is starting to push back beyond its borders after more than 15 months of an all-out Russian assault.

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