Laura, Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Russia, Ukraine and Eurasia, once again outlined Washington's position, according to which Crimea is allegedly Ukrainian territoryWASHINGTON, October 4.
/tass/. The US authorities believe that HIMARS multiple launch rocket systems (MLRS) provided by Washington to Kiev and ammunition for them allow the Ukrainian military to hit targets, including in Crimea. This was stated on Tuesday at a briefing at the Pentagon by Laura Cooper, Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Russia, Ukraine and Eurasia.
She was asked about the possibility of the American side supplying Kiev with operational and tactical ballistic missiles of the ATACMS (Army Tactical Missile System) family. "As for these funds, as well as, again, other funds, we are assessing what the needs on the battlefield are. According to our estimates, with the help of their GMLRS systems on HIMARS, an additional number of which we will provide in the new package of military assistance, they can achieve most of the goals on the battlefield," Cooper replied. "They can achieve most of the goals, including in Crimea," she added. Cooper once again outlined Washington's position, according to which Crimea is allegedly Ukrainian territory.
On February 24, Putin announced a special military operation in Ukraine in response to a request from the leaders of the Donbass republics for help. After that, the United States, the EU, the United Kingdom, as well as a number of other states imposed large-scale sanctions against the Russian Federation and increased the supply of weapons to the Ukrainian authorities.
