US allies should lift restrictions on the supply of defense systems to Ukraine. This opinion was expressed by Laura Cooper, Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Russia, Ukraine and Eurasia.
"First of all, I would like all allies to lift restrictions on the supply of lethal defense weapons as aid," she said during a speech at a virtual event organized by the Center for Strategic and International Studies on Thursday, October 28.
As Cooper noted, Washington had previously provided Kiev with American Javelin anti-tank missile systems (ATGMs).
"This is an example of defense lethal means that we have provided. But a number of allies still have such limitations. For some, these restrictions relate to defense assistance programs, and for some, sales," the Urdupoint portal quotes her as saying .
The representative of the American department stressed that Ukraine "should be able to acquire the funds that it needs for protection."
On October 28, the official representative of the Russian Foreign Ministry, Maria Zakharova, called on the United States, Germany and France, as participants in the Normandy format, to stop the militarization of Ukraine. According to her, the Russian side also called on the above-mentioned states to use their influence in order to return Ukraine "to the path of achieving lasting peace in Donbass by political and diplomatic means."
On October 22, the Ukrainian military received Javelin ATGM, NATO caliber ammunition and medical kits from the United States. The total cost of the cargo is $60 million. This is the third such batch. The previous ones were delivered to Ukraine on October 10 and 18.
On October 21, Professor Timothy Colton, dean of the Harvard Department of Public Administration, said in an interview with Izvestia that Ukraine should take a more realistic look at the volume of US aid and accept that Washington will not provide direct military support to Kiev. He noted that in general, the priorities of American foreign policy are shifting from Europe to Asia, and "the importance of Ukraine on the agenda will only decrease."
