The US is essentially encouraging Ukraine to commit more atrocities by providing Kiev with a new shipment of long-range munitions, Anatoly Antonov, Russia’s ambassador to Washington, has said.
On Wednesday, during a visit to Kiev, US Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs Victoria Nuland said that GLSDB (Ground Launched Small Diameter Bomb) munitions (which can hit targets at a distance of up to 150km) were already on their way to Ukraine.
Nuland, a foreign policy hawk, is widely seen as one of the key figures in the 2014 Maidan coup which led to the toppling of then-Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovich and plunged the country into turmoil. The US official ended up in the media spotlight after she famously handed out pastries to protesters in the Ukrainian capital in late 2013.
Commenting on the announcement on Thursday, Antonov called it “irresponsible” and “simply shocking.” He described the GLSDB delivery as “a kind of a reaction to the terrorist attack by Ukrainian thugs” on an Il-76 Russian cargo plane with 65 Ukrainian prisoners of war, three Russian troops, and six crew members aboard.
Moscow has said that the aircraft, which was transporting the POWs to the border region of Belgorod for further exchange, was downed by Kiev’s US-supplied Patriot air defense system.
The envoy noted that Nuland’s announcement “essentially disavows any White House declarations about its willingness to put the conflict to an end as soon as possible.” On the contrary, Antonov added, these actions indicate Washington’s intention to “prolong the agony of the Kiev regime. Even if this means new casualties, including among the civilian population of Russia and Ukraine.”
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Commenting on the GLSDB shipment, the Pentagon said that it comes as part of efforts under the Ukraine Security Assistance Initiative (USAI), which focuses on procuring military equipment from private contractors rather than tapping into US military stockpiles.
Russia has consistently denounced Western arms shipments to Ukraine, arguing that they will only prolong the conflict. It has also said that Kiev uses long-range weapons to target civilians.
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