The United States said on Tuesday it was “not encouraging” Ukraine to attack Russia.
Washington:
The United States said on Tuesday it was “not encouraging” Ukraine to attack Russia after drone strikes on bases widely seen as carried out by Kiev.
“We are not enabling Ukraine to strike beyond its borders; we are not encouraging Ukraine to strike beyond its borders,” State Department spokesman Ned Price told reporters.
“Everything we do – everything the world does to support Ukraine – is to support Ukraine’s independence,” he said.
He stopped attributing the drone strikes to Ukraine, which has not claimed responsibility. Russia said three people were killed and two aircraft damaged in Monday’s attacks on three bases deep within its territory.
Experts believe Ukraine entered Russian airspace with simple Soviet-era drones, not the billions of dollars in military aid provided by Western powers since the February 24 invasion of Moscow.
“We are providing Ukraine with what it needs on its sovereign territory – on Ukrainian soil – to face Russian aggressors,” Price said.
Price also declined to comment on a Wall Street Journal report that the United States modified the Ukraine-sent HIMARS — a missile system seen as a game-changer on the battlefield — to avoid firing on Russia.
President Joe Biden has publicly said he does not support longer-range missiles for Ukraine, fearing an escalation that would turn the United States more directly against Russia.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by DailyExpertNews staff and is being published from a syndicated feed.)
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