U.S. Sends Weapons To UKRAINE As RUSSIA Tensions Escalate

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Airman 1st Class Stephen Knotts, 436th Aerial Port Squadron ramp services apprentice, drives a cargo loader at Dover Air Force Base, Del., Jan. 24, 2022. The cargo on the loader contains security assistance aid bound for Ukraine. (Credit: Photo By: Roland Balik, Air Force)

By Gary  Raynaldo   DIPLOMATIC  TIMES
WASHINGTON  DC –   PENTAGON  –   The U.S. is sending additional weapons and ammunition to Ukraine as tensions with Russia escalate.  Since 2014, the United States has committed more than $5.4 billion in total assistance to Ukraine, including security and non-security assistance. On Monday,  the Pentagon announced that some 8,500 U.S.-based military personnel have been put on a high state of alert. While none of those troops has yet been asked to deploy, Pentagon spokesperson John F. Kirby told reporters the Defense Department and the U.S. government continue to be actively involved in addressing concerns of NATO allies about a possible Russian incursion into Ukraine.  Russia has amassed many troops in Russia and Belarus near the border with Ukraine. The number of troops there continues to rise. The 8,500 troops alerted to ready themselves for a rapid deployment if called upon are still inside the U.S., Kirby said. They will mostly be assigned to the NATO Response Force.  Kirby said that if and when they deploy, it will only be after being requested by NATO. 

“We’re shipping over additional security assistance to the Ukrainians as we speak,” Kirby said. “[Planes] are taking off and landing in Kyiv. So, we are acting.”

The first shipment of assistance recently directed by President Biden to Ukraine arrived in Ukraine  last Friday. This shipment includes close to 200,000 pounds of lethal aid, including ammunition for the front line defenders of Ukraine, the U.S. Embassy in Kylv announced in a tweet.   

Pentagon says the United States still believes there is time for diplomacy

“We still don’t believe Mr. Putin has made a final decision whether to conduct another incursion/invasion into Ukraine,” Kirby said. “We still think there’s time and space here for diplomacy and dialogue to work. … We still think there’s room and time for diplomacy, and the department wants to make sure that we help provide that … time and space for the diplomats.”    Kirby said  the U.S. has seen no signs of de-escalation  so far.   “What we’re hoping for is a de-escalation. And one of the best ways they could de-escalate the tension would be to remove some of those forces away from Ukraine.”
That de-escalation hasn’t happened, yet, Kirby said.

 

 

 

 

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