US says Ukraine is “not being encouraged” to attack Russia

Washington:

The United States said on Tuesday it was “not encouraging” Ukraine to attack Russia, after drone attacks on targets widely blamed by Kyiv.

State Department spokesman Ned Price told reporters, “We are not enabling Ukraine to attack beyond its borders; we are not encouraging Ukraine to attack beyond its borders.”

“Everything we’re doing – everything the world is doing in support of Ukraine – is in support of Ukraine’s independence,” he said.

He stopped short of attributing the drone attacks to Ukraine, which has not claimed responsibility. Russia said Monday attacks on three targets on its territory killed three people and damaged two planes.

Experts believe Ukraine entered Russia’s airspace with generic Soviet-era drones, not any of the billions of dollars in military aid promised by Western powers since the February 24 invasion of Moscow .

“We are providing Ukraine with everything it needs to deal with Russian aggressors on its sovereign territory – on Ukrainian soil,” Price said.

Price also declined to comment on a Wall Street Journal report that the United States sent rocket systems — seen as a game-changer on the battlefield — to Ukraine to prevent firing in Russia. HIMARS has been replaced.

President Joe Biden has publicly said he does not support long-range missile capabilities for Ukraine, fearing an escalation that would pit the United States directly against Russia.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)