BRUSSELS (Reuters) – NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg will convene a meeting of the NATO-Ukraine Council on Wednesday at Kyiv’s request, a spokesperson for the Western military alliance said on Tuesday.

“The meeting will be held at ambassadorial level,” said the spokesperson, Farah Dakhlallah.

“Ukrainian Defence Minister Rustem Umerov is expected to brief Allies via video-link on the battlefield situation and priority capability needs,” she added.

The NATO-Ukraine Council was established last year to enable closer coordination between the alliance and Kyiv.

Ambassadors from NATO’s member countries and Ukrainian officials normally attend meetings of the council.

“Tomorrow’s meeting comes after recent waves of heavy Russian strikes against Ukrainian civilians and infrastructure,” Dakhlallah said in an emailed statement.

“NATO Allies have delivered substantial support to Ukraine’s air defence and they are committed to further bolstering Ukraine’s defences,” she added.

Russia launched missile and drone attacks targeting scores of Ukrainian regions and killing at least five people, officials said on Tuesday, a day after Moscow’s biggest air attack of the war on its neighbour.

(Reporting by Andrew Gray; Editing by GV De Clercq and Gareth Jones)