The United States and Germany pledged on Wednesday to equip Ukraine with some of the advanced weapons Kiev has long sought to crash planes and destroy artillery. Meanwhile, Russian forces are closer to occupying a key city in the east.
Germany said it would supply Ukraine with anti-aircraft missiles and radar systems, while the United States announced it would provide four sophisticated medium-range missile systems and ammunition.
The United States is trying to help Ukraine repel the Russians without causing a wider war in Europe. The Pentagon said it had received assurances that Ukraine would not use the new missiles to hit targets on Russian territory.
The Kremlin accused Washington of “throwing gasoline on the fire.”
Western weapons have been critical of Ukraine’s success in curbing Russia’s much larger and better-equipped army, thwarting its efforts to occupy the capital and forcing Moscow to shift its focus to the Donbas industrial region to the east. of the country.
But as Russia bombed cities in eastern Ukraine, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy repeatedly demanded more weapons, better weapons, and accused the West of moving too slowly.
Andriy Yermak, head of the Ukrainian president’s office, welcomed reports of new weapons being sent from the West. “I am confident that if we take all the necessary weapons and strengthen the effective sanctions regime, we will win,” he said.
The new weapons could help Ukraine establish and maintain new lines of defense in the east by striking Russian artillery that has bombed cities in the region and limiting Russian air strikes, said retired French General Dominique Trinquand, a former French general who has served in UN military missions.
“NATO countries, European countries and the Americans have expanded the tools and weapons they are giving to Ukraine, and this escalation has been intended to test Russia’s response,” he said. “If there is no response, they continue to supply increasingly effective and sophisticated weapons.”
Military analysts say Russia hopes to invade Donbas before weapons arrive that could change the situation on the ground. It will take at least three weeks to send American precision weapons and train Ukrainian troops to use them on the battlefield, the Pentagon said. But Undersecretary of Defense Colin Kahl said he believes they will arrive in time to make a difference on the battlefield.
The missile systems are part of a new $ 700 million package of military aid to Ukraine from the United States, which also includes helicopters, Javelin anti-tank weapons, radars, tactical vehicles, spare parts and other equipment.
The missiles have a range of about 80 kilometers and can move easily from one place to another. Ukraine has unsuccessfully insisted on providing missiles with a range of about 300 kilometers.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Moscow did not trust assurances that Ukraine would not fire on Russian territory. “We believe the United States is deliberately throwing gasoline on the fire,” he said. Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said Ukraine’s push for more weapons was a “direct provocation aimed at drawing the West into fighting.” He warned that multiple missiles would increase the risk of an escalating conflict.
“Reasonable Western politicians are well aware of these dangers,” he added.
Germany’s promise to provide IRIS-T air defense systems would mark the first shipment of long-range air defense weapons to Ukraine since the start of the war there.
Germany has been criticized, both at home and by allies abroad, for not doing enough to help Ukraine. German Chancellor Olaf Scholz told lawmakers that IRIS-T surface-to-air missiles are the country’s most modern air defense system.
“By doing so, we will enable Ukraine to defend an entire city from Russian airstrikes,” he said. Radar systems will also help Ukraine locate enemy artillery.
Reports of weapons came as a regional governor said Russian forces now control 80% of Sievierodonetsk, a city key to Moscow’s efforts to end its occupation of the Donbas region, where Ukrainian forces and Russian-backed separatists have fought for years. on. Part of the region was controlled by pro-Russian separatists before Russia launched an offensive against Ukraine in February this year./VOA