Poroshenko urges Washington to provide lethal military aid to Ukraine

Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko has reportedly urged the United States to provide military assistance to his nation to counter Russian aggression in the east.

While addressing a joint session of the Congress in Washington, he made a plea to the U.S. to provide military support, both lethal and non-lethal, saying that non-lethal equipments like blankets and night-vision goggles are important but one cannot "win the war with blankets," reported the BBC.

U.S. President Barack Obama had earlier condemned Russia's action in Eastern Ukraine but had offered only non-lethal military support to Ukraine.

In his speech, Poroshenko also accused Russia of being driven by an "imperial mindset" and "nostalgia for the Soviet Union" in its annexation of Crimea in March and by backing rebels in Eastern Ukraine. He also termed the Russian aggression a threat to "global security everywhere."

His address brought standing ovations and applauds, the report said.

More than 3,000 people have died in the Ukraine conflict since April.

Both the U.S. and the European Union (EU) have imposed a new wave of sanctions against Russia over its involvement in the Ukraine crisis.