© Chip Somodevilla/Getty ImagesUS President-elect Donald Trump
US President-elect Donald Trump has criticized Ukraine's strikes deep into Russia using Western-supplied weapons, saying that they only escalate the conflict between Kiev and Moscow.
Trump made the statement on Thursday in an interview with Time magazine, which named him the 2024 Person of the Year. Of strikes deep into Russian internationally recognized territory, he said:
"I disagree very vehemently with sending missiles hundreds of miles into Russia. Why are we doing that? Such attacks are just escalating this war and making it worse. That should not have been allowed to be done... And I think that is a very big mistake, very big mistake."Trump returned to the issue later in the interview, saying:
"The most dangerous thing right now is the fact that Zelensky has decided, with the approval of, I assume, the President [Joe Biden], to start shooting missiles into Russia. I think that is a major escalation. I think it is a foolish decision."The US president-elect's comments came a day after the Russian Defense Ministry reported that Ukrainian forces had fired six US-supplied ATACMS missiles at a military airfield near the southern city of Taganrog.
Two of them were shot down and the rest were diverted using electronic warfare during the attack, the ministry said. The fallen debris resulted in some injuries and minor damage to two buildings and several vehicles, it added.
On Thursday, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said:
"Russia's response to the strike on Taganrog will follow at the time and in the way that will be deemed appropriate. But it will definitely follow."In late November, Russia used its new Oreshnik hypersonic ballistic missile system for the first time, striking the Yuzhmash military plant in the Ukrainian city of Dnepr.
According to Moscow, the deployment of the state-of-the-art weapon was a response to Washington and its allies allowing Ukraine to target internationally recognized Russian territory with the long-range weapons they supply to Kiev.
Russian President Vladimir Putin warned at the time:
"If Ukraine's attacks deep inside Russia continue, Moscow reserves the right to use our weapons against the military facilities of those countries that allow the use of their weapons against our facilities."
The Russian admin claimed that their air defences took down the latest batch of US/nato terrorism. The Russian admin probably should keep plucking these nato weapons from the sky and biding their time. The Kiev junta only uses the retaliation to call for more weapons and cash. Especially cash.
Meet the new boss, same as the old boss. Meet the new war, same as the old war.