As the conflict between Russia and Ukraine wears on, the Russian side has squarely accused the United States. on Wednesday, of ‘adding fuel to fire’ by supplying advanced rockets to Ukraine and said it did not trust Kyiv not to fire them into Russia.
Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov told reporters that “we believe that the U.S. is deliberately pouring oil on the fire. The U.S. is obviously holding the line that it will fight Russia to the last Ukrainian.”
U.S. President Joe Biden had recently agreed to provide Ukraine with advanced rocket systems that can strike with precision at long-range Russian targets.
According to Biden, he won’t send anything to Ukraine that can fire into Russia.
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This was a part of a $700 million weapons package expected to be unveiled soon.
Last Friday, Russia cautioned that the US would “cross a red line” if it supplies the systems to Ukraine.
Russia and Ukraine have been fighting for over three months as of today and many casualties have already been recorded.
Ukrain has given “assurances” to the United States that it will not use new missile systems promised by Washington to target Russian territory, US diplomatic chief Antony Blinken said Wednesday.
“It is Russia that is attacking Ukraine, not the other way around. To be clear, the best way to avoid escalation is for Russia to stop the aggression and the war that it has launched,” he told reporters, responding to Moscow’s accusations that it was providing the new US weapons.
The Biden administration has approved the bid to send Ukrain a small number of high-tech, medium-range rocket systems, a critical weapon that Ukrainian leaders have been pleading for as they struggle to stall Russian progress.
The rocket systems are part of a new $700 million tranche of security assistance for Ukraine from the US that will include helicopters, Javelin anti-tank weapon systems and tactical vehicles.
Meanwhile, Russian forces have now seized half of Sievierodonetsk, a key city in eastern Ukraine, as heavy fighting between Russians and Ukrainians continues.