The United States, Russia's "greatest competitor," praises Putin's "impressive" weaponry. Defense Secretary of the United States Lloyd Austin has praised Russia's armed forces and equipment. He went on to say that despite having such overwhelming military power, Moscow has been unable to win the ongoing fight in Ukraine since February. While noting that Washington has increased the number of its troops in Europe to over 100,000, the U.S. Defense Secretary asserted that the military alliance with Ukraine is defensive in nature. Senior Russian officials have asserted that "NATO and the Western world" are in conflict with Russian soldiers in Ukraine in addition to Kyiv. The complete story is in this report.