Ukraine's Poroshenko says will sign defence deals with U.S. soon

U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson shakes hands with Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko during their meeting at the U.S. State Department in Washington, U.S., June 20, 2017. Mykola Lazarenko/Ukrainian Presidential Press Service/Handout via REUTERS

KIEV (Reuters) - Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko said after meetings in Washington that Kiev and the United States would soon sign a number of agreements boosting defence cooperation, news agency Interfax Ukraine reported on Wednesday. Poroshenko said U.S. Defense Secretary Jim Mattis and Vice President Mike Pence had told him that key members of President Donald Trump's administration would visit Kiev in the next two to three months. "And very important agreements will be signed, including agreements on defence cooperation, including an agreement on defence procurement and an agreement on military-technical cooperation," Poroshenko was quoted as saying at a briefing. (Reporting by Alessandra Prentice; editing by Mark Heinrich)