WASHINGTON – President Biden said on Tuesday that the United States will send Ukraine advanced missile systems and ammunition that will allow it to target Russian military assets more accurately within its borders.
In an Op-Ed published online on Tuesday night by The New York Times, Mr Biden said the delivery of advanced missile systems would allow Ukraine to “fight on the battlefield and be in the strongest possible position on the table.” for negotiations. “
Mr Biden’s administration has already sent anti-tank and anti-aircraft missiles, unmanned aerial vehicles, helicopters and other billion-dollar military equipment to Ukraine as the country seeks to repel Russia’s three-month invasion.
As the war dragged on, the Biden administration gradually expanded the range of weapons it provided to Ukrainians. But senior administration officials are concerned about provoking a wider war with Russian President Vladimir Putin by providing weapons that could allow Ukraine to strike deep into his country.
In his article, Mr Biden emphasized that the new missiles would be used to “hit key targets on the battlefield in Ukraine”. And he said the United States did not seek to engage Russia in a wider conflict.
He said outright that he had not sought to oust Mr Putin, despite his candid remarks during a speech in Poland earlier this year, when he said the Russian president “could not stay in power”.
Mr Biden presented a different view on Tuesday.
“We are not looking for a war between NATO and Russia,” he said. “As much as I disagree with Mr Putin and find his actions outrage, the United States will not try to bring him down in Moscow.
He added: “Until the United States or our allies are attacked, we will not be directly involved in this conflict, either by sending US troops to fight in Ukraine or by attacking Russian forces.
Mr Biden told reporters Monday that “we will not send missile systems to Ukraine that could hit Russia.”
Officials have not provided details on exactly what types of missiles the United States will provide. The one most commonly used by the Pentagon is the M31 GMLRS – for a reusable multiple-launch system – a precision-guided satellite weapon that carries roughly the same explosive power as a 500-pound bomb dropped from the air.
It can fly more than 40 miles, far beyond the reach of any artillery that Ukraine uses now. According to a report released by Congressional Research in June, the Pentagon has spent approximately $ 5.4 billion to purchase more than 42,000 such missiles since 1998.
But Mr Biden made clear in his Op-Ed on Tuesday that the administration was ready to provide more modern weapons to Ukraine as the Russian military made progress in the east.
“Standing next to Ukraine in its hour of need is not just the right thing to do,” he wrote. “It is in our vital national interests to ensure a peaceful and stable Europe and to make it clear that this may not be right.
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