Russia accused NATO of engaging in a proxy battle that created a serious risk of nuclear war as Washington convened its allies on Tuesday at a German air base to pledge the heavy weapons Ukraine needs to achieve victory. With Russian forces having been forced back from Kyiv and now attempting a new advance in Ukraine’s east, U.S. Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin welcomed officials from more than 40 countries to Ramstein, Germany, headquarters of U.S. air power in Europe. 

A Ukrainian serviceman walks amid the rubble of a building heavily damaged by multiple Russian bombardments in Kharkiv on Monday