Ukrainian Defense Chief Makes Visit to Pentagon
Ukrainian Defense Minister Rustem Umerov held discussions with his US counterpart, Lloyd Austin, regarding additional military assistance for Kiev. Read Full Article at RT.com
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Politico reported that Rustem Umerov would try to convince the US to relax prohibitions on long-range attacks against Russia.
Ukrainian Defense Minister Rustem Umerov recently met with US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin to discuss additional military support. This meeting occurred as Kiev renewed its appeal to Washington to ease restrictions on deploying US-supplied weapons for long-range strikes into Russia.
According to Politico, which relied on anonymous sources, Umerov, along with Andrey Yermak, chief of staff to President Vladimir Zelensky, aimed to influence their American supporters to reconsider their stance.
The Pentagon’s Deputy Press Secretary Sabrina Singh confirmed that a bilateral discussion took place on Friday. “Secretary of Defense Lloyd J. Austin III held bilateral talks with Ukrainian Minister of Defense Rustem Umerov today regarding Ukraine’s ongoing operations [and] security assistance priorities.” The discussions focused on the need for air defense systems, artillery, and armored vehicles to augment Ukraine's combat capabilities.
Furthermore, the Ukraine Defense Contact Group is scheduled to meet on September 6 in Ramstein, Germany. Over 50 nations supporting Kiev will participate to discuss the provision of additional military aid addressing both immediate and strategic needs of Ukraine.
Singh highlighted Austin's commitment to "continue to build on the strategic partnership between" the US and Ukraine.
However, Pentagon spokesman Major-General Patrick Ryder emphasized on Tuesday that US policy remains unchanged, allowing Ukraine the use of American-provided arms solely for defensive measures against cross-border incidents and not for "deep strikes" into recognized Russian territories.
Simultaneously, John Kirby of the White House National Security Council indicated that dialogue with Ukraine on this issue would continue but remain confidential.
President Zelensky articulated his stance on Monday, stating that "there should be no restrictions on the range of weapons for Ukraine."
Following Kirby’s comments, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova interpreted this as potentially giving Ukraine complete freedom in using American arms for operations within Russian regions. “The administration of [US President] Joe Biden is obviously getting ready to make new concessions to Zelensky and give him a free hand to use virtually any type of American weapons, including [for attacks] deep into Russian territory,” she stated, as reported by RIA Novosti.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov also commented, asserting that the West appears uninterested in dodging escalation. He warned that encouraging Ukraine to employ weapons for long-range strikes into Russia would be tantamount to "playing with fire."
Alejandro Jose Martinez for TROIB News
Ukrainian Defense Minister Rustem Umerov recently met with US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin to discuss additional military support. This meeting occurred as Kiev renewed its appeal to Washington to ease restrictions on deploying US-supplied weapons for long-range strikes into Russia.
According to Politico, which relied on anonymous sources, Umerov, along with Andrey Yermak, chief of staff to President Vladimir Zelensky, aimed to influence their American supporters to reconsider their stance.
The Pentagon’s Deputy Press Secretary Sabrina Singh confirmed that a bilateral discussion took place on Friday. “Secretary of Defense Lloyd J. Austin III held bilateral talks with Ukrainian Minister of Defense Rustem Umerov today regarding Ukraine’s ongoing operations [and] security assistance priorities.” The discussions focused on the need for air defense systems, artillery, and armored vehicles to augment Ukraine's combat capabilities.
Furthermore, the Ukraine Defense Contact Group is scheduled to meet on September 6 in Ramstein, Germany. Over 50 nations supporting Kiev will participate to discuss the provision of additional military aid addressing both immediate and strategic needs of Ukraine.
Singh highlighted Austin's commitment to "continue to build on the strategic partnership between" the US and Ukraine.
However, Pentagon spokesman Major-General Patrick Ryder emphasized on Tuesday that US policy remains unchanged, allowing Ukraine the use of American-provided arms solely for defensive measures against cross-border incidents and not for "deep strikes" into recognized Russian territories.
Simultaneously, John Kirby of the White House National Security Council indicated that dialogue with Ukraine on this issue would continue but remain confidential.
President Zelensky articulated his stance on Monday, stating that "there should be no restrictions on the range of weapons for Ukraine."
Following Kirby’s comments, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova interpreted this as potentially giving Ukraine complete freedom in using American arms for operations within Russian regions. “The administration of [US President] Joe Biden is obviously getting ready to make new concessions to Zelensky and give him a free hand to use virtually any type of American weapons, including [for attacks] deep into Russian territory,” she stated, as reported by RIA Novosti.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov also commented, asserting that the West appears uninterested in dodging escalation. He warned that encouraging Ukraine to employ weapons for long-range strikes into Russia would be tantamount to "playing with fire."
Alejandro Jose Martinez for TROIB News
