19 January 2023, Thursday, 10:43 620

United States ready to help Ukraine attack Crimea – media

Editor: Roman Vaniyan

Читати українською

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The administration of U.S. Joe Biden is considering the possibility of transferring weapons to Ukraine to attack Crimea, which is temporarily occupied by Russia.

This was reported by The New York Times on Wednesday, January 18, with reference to its own sources in the Administration.

The publication recalls that the United States did not recognize the annexation of Crimea, but Biden’s Administration followed a hard line, refusing to provide Kyiv with the necessary weapons, and now this line is beginning to soften.

"The moderation occurred because Biden’s Administration believed that if the Ukrainian military could show Russia that its control of Crimea could be threatened, it would strengthen Kyiv's position in any future negotiations. Also, according to U.S. officials and experts, fears that the Kremlin would retaliate with tactical nuclear weapons have faded, although they warned that the risk remains," the statement said.

The New York Times notes that U.S. officials are discussing with their Ukrainian counterparts the use of U.S. weapons, from HIMARS missile systems to Bradley fighting vehicles, to possibly strike the Crimean bridge, but the U.S. president is not yet ready to provide Ukraine with long-range missile systems to attack Russian facilities on the peninsula.

As the Ukrainian News agency earlier reported, on January 18, Canadian Defense Minister Anita Anand announced that the country would transfer 200 Senator APC armored vehicles to Ukraine.

On January 16, Great Britain announced the provision of a new military aid package to Ukraine. Among other weapons, it included Challenger 2 tanks.

On January 14, Prime Minister Rishi Sunak approved the plan to send 12 Challenger 2 tanks to Ukraine.