President of Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelenskyy has confirmed the arrival of US-made Abrams tanks in Ukraine.

U.S President, Joe Biden said last week that the first US Abrams tanks would be delivered to Ukraine this week.

In a statement on Telegram, Zelenskky said, “Good news from (Defense) Minister (Rustam) Umerov. Abrams (tanks) are already in Ukraine, we are preparing to reinforce our brigades.”

Zelenskyy thanked allies for fulfilling their pledges, adding that Kyiv is seeking new contracts to expand the supply.

Zelensky did not elaborate on how many tanks had arrived in the country, nor on how long it would take for them to be deployed to the front line.

Washington had promised to provide 31 Abrams tanks to Kyiv at the start of the year, part of more than $43bn in security assistance pledged by the US over the past 18 months.

US officials had said the tanks would be paired with 120 mm armour-piercing depleted uranium rounds. The decision to provide Abrams tanks to Ukraine represented a U-turn as American defence officials had repeatedly said they were ill-suited for Kyiv’s forces due to their complexity.

Also, Zelenskyy said that he received reports from other ministers, including on eliminating the consequences of shelling of the city of Odesa and other settlements.

“Assistance to the victims. Covering Odesa is a priority in all my negotiations regarding air defense,” he said.

Russia Directs Drones And Missiles At Odesa

Meanwhile, A Russian drone and missile strike hit Odesa, damaging infrastructure, a grain silo and an abandoned hotel.

Oleh Kiper, the governor of Ukraine’s Odesa region, says nearly 1,000 tonnes of grain was stored in facilities attacked by Russia overnight.

Ukraine’s air force reported downing all Russian drones launched overnight, but one of 12 Kalibr missiles and two P-800 Oniks cruise missiles apparently made it past air defenses

The Russian Defense Ministry said long-range missiles and drones were used to strike facilities that it alleged had housed foreign mercenaries and trained saboteurs. The ministry didn’t name locations or provide other specifics to support its claim. It also said it downed several Ukrainian drones.

Russian forces also dropped bombs and launched six heavy artillery strikes on southern Ukraine’s Kherson region, destroying a school and factory and damaging residential buildings.

Three of the deaths reported by the Ukrainian president’s office were in the region:

The governor of Ukraine’s Kherson region says the death toll from a Russian air attack in Beryslav was two and four people were injured.

A 73-year-old man and a 70-year-old woman died in the bombing, according to the governor.

“They were indoors at the time of the enemy attack,” Prokudin said in a statement on the Telegram messaging app.

“Two more people are injured. A 55-year-old man is in an extremely serious condition. He has a broken shoulder, chest and abdominal injuries. A 59-year-old woman with back and leg injuries was also taken to the hospital,” he added.

According to Ukrainian energy operator, Ukrenergo, 400 settlements in the country remain without electricity “due to hostilities and other reasons.”

In a statement on Telegram, Ukrenergo noted, “As a result of the hostilities, there is damage to the networks of the Donetsk region, Dnipropetrovsk region, Odesa region, Sumy region, Kharkiv region, Kherson region.”

“The restoration of power is taking place under a security situation and with the permission of the military,” Ukrenergo added.

Nonetheless, Ukraine’s Ministry of Defence stated that Russia’s attack on a hotel in Odesa is “a pathetic attempt at retaliation” for Kyiv’s “successful hit on the Russian navy headquarters in Sevastopol.”

Last week, Ukraine struck the headquarters of Russia’s Black Sea Fleet in a missile attack that left the main building in flames and a serviceman missing, according to Russian military officials.