The president also recently approved another $ 125 million in lethal aid to Ukraine to defend the border with Russia, including two armed patrol boats and anti-artillery radar. The United States has pledged more than $ 2 billion in security assistance to Ukraine since 2014, including the delivery of Javelin anti-tank missiles. While the Obama administration was sending military equipment to Ukraine, lethal aid did not reach the Trump administration.
Biden has a long history of defending aid to Ukraine, especially after the Russian invasion of Crimea in 2014. As vice president and chief envoy of the Obama administration in Kiev, Biden visited the country six times and spent hours on the phone with his commanders.
He also led efforts to send US forces to train Ukrainian fighters and urged top officials to crack down on corruption, his advisers told Politico in an interview last year.
Pentagon’s answer: Pentagon leaders have expressed concern to NATO allies about renewed fighting in Eastern Europe, which resulted in the killing of four Ukrainian soldiers on March 26, and the injury of two others, as well as the strengthening of Russian forces, spokesman John Kirby said Wednesday.
“Obviously, we don’t want to see more violations of Ukrainian territory,” Kirby said. “We have been very clear about the threats we see across the fields from Russia … We take them very seriously.”
Kirby said he was not aware of any interaction between the Russians and American forces in Eastern Europe.
General Mark Milley, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, separately discussed the security situation with his Russian and Ukrainian counterparts on Wednesday, according to a lecture from his office. Also on Wednesday, Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuliba said that he “discussed ways to enhance security cooperation” with Foreign Minister Anthony Blinkin.
I had a fruitful and focused call with Include a Tweet Meanwhile, Russia continues to systematically deteriorate the security situation in eastern Ukraine and Crimea. “
Kirby said that National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan earlier this week confirmed the US “continued support” for Ukraine’s sovereignty and territorial integrity in a phone call with its Ukrainian counterpart.
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