Washington does not want to become a party to the conflict between Kiev and Moscow, and while the US intends to continue supplying Ukraine with weapons, systems that allow Ukrainian forces to attack Russia will not be among them, US ambassador to the UN Linda Thomas-Greenfield said on Tuesday.
“Look, it’s very very simple. We have been clear from day one that we will provide Ukraine with weapons to defend itself from Russian aggression, to defend itself inside its borders, to fight against Russia,” Thomas-Greenfield told reporters at a press conference marking the end of Washington’s presidency over the UN Security Council. “We’re not providing any weapons that will allow the Ukrainians to attack Russia from inside of Ukraine, and President [Joe] Biden has been very clear on that.”
“We’re not going to become [a] party to the war,” she added.
On Monday, Biden confirmed media speculation that the US intends to ship multiple rocket launcher systems (MLRS) to Ukraine. He offered no details beyond saying he was “not going to send to Ukraine rocket systems that can strike into Russia.”
US media outlets have mentioned MLRS systems as possibly destined for Ukraine – the M270 tracked launcher, retired in 2003, or the more modern M142 High Mobility Artillery Rocket System (HIMARS). Both can launch tactical ballistic missiles with a range of up to 300 kilometers, as well as barrage rockets with an effective range of around 30 kilometers.