During an expected visit to Kyiv by US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin on Sunday, Ukraine will beg for more powerful weapons in order to strengthen the country’s defences against the Russian invasion.

In an emotional address at Kyiv’s 1,000-year-old Saint Sophia Cathedral to honour Orthodox Easter, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy declared his country would overcome “difficult times,” as violence in the east overshadowed the religious celebrations.

The trip by Blinken and Austin, which was confirmed earlier by Zelenskiy, would be the highest-level US visit to Ukraine since Russian President Vladimir Putin ordered the country’s invasion two months ago.

The White House has not confirmed Blinken and Austin’s visit. The Pentagon and the State Department both declined to comment.

“We are encouraged by the Orthodox Christians’ tenacity in the face of President Putin’s ruthless war of aggression in Ukraine,” Blinken wrote on Twitter. “We will continue to help them, and we wish them and everyone else enjoying Easter optimism and a speedy return to peace today.”

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