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Biden in turn sends missile systems to Ukraine – and gives Russia nuclear warning | World News


Joe Biden has announced the US will send intermediate-range missile systems to Ukraine to support its forces as they struggle to thwart Russia’s advance, in an apparent turnaround.

The US President said on Monday that Washington “will not send Ukraine missile system that can hit Russia”.

But with Vladimir PutinForces are making progress in the Donbas region, the decision to deliver the High Mobility Artillery Missile System (HIMARS) was made on the condition that Ukraine does not use the system to launch attacks via border.

Ukraine live news: Russian nuclear forces hold drills

The systems are part of a new $700 million package of security assistance to Kyiv from the United States, officials said, including helicopters, Javelin anti-tank weapons systems, and tactical vehicles. , spare parts and more.

The White House hopes the decision to provide advanced missile systems will balance a desire to help Ukraine deter Russian artillery camps while not providing weapons that could cause an escalation in the war.

In a guest essay published in The New York Times, Mr. Biden confirmed that he had decided to “provide Ukraine with more advanced ammunition and missile systems to enable them to more accurately strike important targets on the Ukrainian battlefield”.

Any weapon system can fire at Russia if it’s close enough to the border.

The aid package expected to be announced on Wednesday will send what the US considers to be medium-range missiles, which can typically fly about 45 miles.

Senior administration officials, who spoke on condition of anonymity before the official announcement, said the Ukrainians had assured American officials that they would not fire rockets at Russian territory.

However, they say these systems will give Ukrainian forces greater accuracy in targeting Russian assets inside Ukraine.

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The city is under constant shelling

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Civilians cling to life in the key city of Lysychansk as barbaric shelling increases

The expectation is that Ukraine can use missiles in the eastern Donbas region, where they can intercept Russian artillery and take out Russian positions in towns where fighting is fierce, such as Severodonetsk.

Severodonetsk is key to Russia’s efforts to capture the Donbas before more Western weapons arrive to bolster Ukraine’s defenses.

The city 90 miles south of the Russian border is the last enclave under Ukrainian government control in the Luhansk region of the Donbas.

Mr. Biden said in the New York Times article: “We do not encourage or facilitate Ukraine to attack beyond its borders. We do not want to prolong the war just to cause more pain for Russia.”

Debris hangs from a residential building heavily damaged by a Russian bombing in Bakhmut, eastern Ukraine, eastern Ukraine, Saturday, May 28, 2022. Fighting broke out in around Lysychansk and nearby Sievierodonetsk, the last major cities under Ukrainian control in the Luhansk region.  (AP Photo / Francisco Seco)
Picture:
A residential building heavily damaged by a Russian bombing in Bakhmut, north of Severodonetsk. Photo: AP

‘Any use of nuclear weapons in this conflict … will lead to dire consequences’

He also used the essay to assuage fears of nuclear attacks, while also issuing a warning to the Putin regime.

“I know many people around the world who are concerned about the use of nuclear weapons,” he said.

“We currently see no indication that Russia intends to use nuclear weapons in Ukraine, although Russia’s occasional use of nuclear weapons to mock the nuclear sword is very dangerous and extreme. irresponsible period.

“Let me be clear: Any use of nuclear weapons in this conflict of any scale would be completely unacceptable to us and the rest of the world and would lead to to serious consequences.”

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The missile systems would be within the Pentagon’s limited jurisdiction, which in turn would involve getting the weapons from US stockpiles and getting them to Ukraine quickly.

The Ukrainian military will also need training on the new systems, which could take as little as a week or two.

HIMARS is mounted on a truck and can carry a cargo container with six missiles.

While it can launch a medium-range missile, it is also capable of firing a longer-range missile, the Army Tactical Missile System, which has a range of about 190 miles but was not planned.

It comes as Germany announced it would supply Ukraine with modern radar and anti-aircraft missile systems, amid growing criticism that Berlin hasn’t done enough to help the country defend itself against Russian forces. aggression.

Since the war began in February, the US and its allies have been trying to cross a narrow line by sending weapons to Ukraine to counter Russia, but stopping the aid would hurt Mr. trigger a broader conflict that could spread to other parts of Europe.



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