© Reuters / Gleb GaranichFILE PHOTO: A Ukrainian soldier holds a Javelin missile system during a military exercise near Rivne, Ukraine, May 26, 2021.
The latest gift from Washington aims to boost the "lethality, command and control, and situational awareness" of Kiev's forces, the Pentagon said in a statement on Friday. In practice, that translates into counter-artillery radars, counter-drone systems, secure communications technology and electronic warfare equipment.
Comment: Whatever the Pentagon has to give to Ukraine, it knows that Ukraine is no match for Russia. Moreover, Ukrainians know it; with 50% recently stating that they don't want to join NATO because, as Putin pointed out, they know they'll be serve as mere cannon fodder in the event of any troubles. That said, in the meantime, a more lethally armed Ukraine is a cause for concern.
Ukraine will also receive medical evacuation gear, as well as training and equipment to improve the safety and capacity of its air force bases. The new systems are meant to complement a $125 million aid package that was announced in March, which included counter-artillery radars and Mark VI patrol boats the US is phasing out.
The two aid packages have been authorized by the US Congress as part of the defense funding bill, but it was contingent upon the Pentagon certifying that Kiev was making sufficient progress on recommended reforms.
Washington has pledged more than $2.5 billion in military assistance to Ukraine since 2014, when the government in Kiev was overthrown with the assistance of far-right nationalists. The fallout from the US-backed 'Maidan' triggered a chain of events which led to the Crimean peninsula seceding and voting to rejoin Russia. A situation which US refuses to recognize to this day.
The two regions of Donetsk and Lugansk in the Donbass area of east Ukraine also rebelled, and defeated two attempts to crush them by force. Kiev claims this amounts to "Russian aggression." However, Moscow also doesn't recognise the two self-declared states.
Tensions have risen in recent months, with fighting in the Donbass region escalating and both Russia and NATO conducting large-scale military exercises in Europe.
Biden is scheduled to meet with Putin on June 16. Ukraine is expected to be on the agenda, along with issues such as arms control, cybersecurity and nuclear cooperation.
Comment: Just yesterday it was reported that the US flew two nuclear bombers close to Russia's border, and, as noted in the comment, a similar provocation by the military occurred when Trump went to trade talks in China. Provocations like these are both suspicious and reckless, and, taken together, one can't help but wonder just who is ordering these kinds of directives?
Overall, it would appear that all is not well in the US, and a recent letter signed by 120 retired generals questioning Biden's mental health and warning of an encroaching 'tyrannical government' further highlights this point.