Russia-Ukraine updates: 2 US veterans who joined Ukrainian forces missing

The Americans, Andy Tai Ngoc Huynh and Alexander Drueke, are both from Alabama.

ByMorgan Winsor, Emily Shapiro, Meredith Deliso, Nadine El-Bawab, Ivan Pereira, Bill Hutchinson, and Kevin Shalvey
Last Updated: June 15, 2022, 4:20 PM EDT

Russian President Vladimir Putin's "special military operation" into neighboring Ukraine began on Feb. 24, with Russian forces invading from Belarus, to the north, and Russia, to the east. Ukrainian troops have offered "stiff resistance," according to U.S. officials.

The Russian military has since launched a full-scale ground offensive in eastern Ukraine's disputed Donbas region, capturing the strategic port city of Mariupol and securing a coastal corridor to the Moscow-annexed Crimean Peninsula.

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Here's how the news is developing. All times Eastern.
Jun 15, 2022, 4:20 PM EDT

100 Ukrainian military deaths per day in line with US estimates: Milley

Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Gen. Mark Milley, said Ukrainian officials' estimate of 100 Ukrainian military deaths per day is "in the ballpark" with U.S. estimates.

Milley would not disclose exactly how many more artillery pieces the Russians have than the Ukrainians, saying that was classified, but he confirmed that they do outnumber the Ukrainians.

Milley noted that while the Russians are using large numbers of artillery to target civilian and urban areas, Ukrainians are using "much better artillery techniques" on the battlefield. Milley explained how the mortars, howitzers and HIMARS systems will give the Ukrainians a more effective combined layered system to strike at the Russians from short, medium and long distances.

-ABC News' Luis Martinez

Jun 15, 2022, 4:07 PM EDT

More Ukraine aid to come on 'fairly routine basis': Kirby

John Kirby, joining Wednesday's White House press briefing in his new role as National Security Council coordinator, said the $1 billion in military aid announced Wednesday is the first to come from the $40 billion aid package that was passed by Congress in May.

Looking ahead, Kirby said, "you will see additional packages” coming on a “fairly routine basis.”

“We want to meter it out so that we're in lockstep with the Ukrainians and where they are on the battlefield and what they need in real time," he said.

-ABC News' Justin Ryan Gomez

Jun 15, 2022, 1:08 PM EDT

Biden announces additional $1B in military, $225M in humanitarian assistance

President Joe Biden has announced $1 billion more in U.S. military aid for Ukraine.

PHOTO: Svitlana, a member of Ukraine's Territorial Defense Forces, stands near a trench dug out to serve as a fighting position at her post near Kramatorsk, Ukraine, June 15, 2022
Svitlana, a member of Ukraine's Territorial Defense Forces, stands near a trench dug out to serve as a fighting position at her post near Kramatorsk, Ukraine, June 15, 2022.
Scott Olson/Getty Images

Ukrainian servicemen fire with a French self-propelled 155 mm/52-calibre gun Caesar towards Russian positions at a front line in the eastern Ukrainian region of Donbas on June 15, 2022.
Aris Messinis/AFP via Getty Images

Biden said he spoke with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy Wednesday morning and that the aid will include "additional artillery and coastal defense weapons, as well as ammunition for the artillery and advanced rocket systems."

Biden also announced $225 million in humanitarian assistance "to help people inside Ukraine, including by supplying safe drinking water, critical medical supplies and health care, food, shelter, and cash for families to purchase essential items," according to a statement.

Children walk past homes in their neighborhood that were completely destroyed by a Russian rocket attack in Dobropillia, Ukraine, June 15, 2022.
Scott Olson/Getty Images

-ABC News' Justin Ryan Gomez

Jun 15, 2022, 6:49 AM EDT

Biden promises to free blocked Ukrainian grain

President Joe Biden said on Tuesday the United States is working with European allies to remove blocked Ukrainian grain by rail.

Speaking at the 29th AFL-CIO Quadrennial Constitutional Convention, Biden said 20 million tons of grain are stuck in Ukraine and need to be exported to reduce global food prices.

President Joe Biden walks to the Oval Office of the White House after stepping off Marine One on June 14, 2022, in Washington.
Patrick Semansky/AP Photo

As the grain cannot be exported via the Black Sea due to the constant threat of Russian attacks and explosions, the U.S. and its partners are planning to build granaries on the Ukrainian border, Biden said.

The railways present an alternative to Ukrainian coastal waters of the Azov and Black seas that are in need of demining. The area of their contamination with explosives can be up to 19 thousand square kilometers, Ministry of Internal Affairs spokesperson Alyona Matveeva said on Tuesday.

The full demining of Ukraine can take from 5 to 10 years with the help of international experts, Matveeva added. To date, about 80% of explosive devices have been removed and neutralized in the Kyiv region, she said.

-ABC News' Edward Szekeres, Nataliia Kushnir, Max Uzol and Yulia Drozd

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