The US and British top diplomats began a visit on Wednesday to Ukraine, where they will discuss further easing rules on firing Western weapons into Russia, whose alleged acquisition of Iranian missiles has raised new fears.
Before their trip, both diplomats expressed worries regarding the transfer of ballistic missiles from Iran to Russia. Blinken stated, “The supply of ballistic missiles by Iran in direct assistance of Russia’s conflict against Ukraine poses a menace to European and global security.”
In a rare joint trip, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken took the nine-hour train from Poland to Kyiv alongside Foreign Secretary David Lammy, whose two-month-old Labor government has vowed to keep up Britain’s role as a key defender of Ukraine.
Iran’s provision of ballistic missiles in direct support of Russia’s war against Ukraine is a threat to European and global security. Today, @StateDept and @USTreasury are imposing sanctions on individuals and entities supporting such activities.
— Secretary Antony Blinken (@SecBlinken) September 11, 2024
The visit comes as President Volodymyr Zelensky ramps up his requests to the West to provide weapons with more firepower and fewer restrictions.
US President Joe Biden was asked in Washington whether he would let Ukraine use longer-range weapons, he replied, “We’re working that out right now.”
Biden, while strongly supportive of Ukraine, has previously made clear that he wants to avoid devolving into direct conflict between the United States and Russia, the world’s two leading nuclear powers.
Blinken, speaking on Tuesday in London alongside Lammy, said the United States was committed to providing Ukraine “what they need when they need it to be most effective in dealing with the Russian aggression.”
Asked what the Kremlin’s answer to the move would be, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters: “It will be appropriate,” adding that Russia’s offensive on Ukraine was itself a “response” to the West’s support for Kyiv.
Fears From Iran missiles
Ukraine enjoyed a fresh boost late on Tuesday when the International Monetary Fund said it reached a staff-level agreement that could open the door to $1.1 billion for the country, which is weathering Russian attacks on infrastructure as winter sets in.
But on the military front, the United States said it believes that Russia could start firing short-range Iranian-made missiles into Ukraine within weeks.
The United States gave its blessing earlier this year for Ukraine to use Western weapons to hit Russian forces when in direct conflict across the border.
But Ukraine launched a surprise, daring offensive last month directly into Russian territory in Kursk, hoping to restore morale and divert Moscow as Russian troops trudge forward in the frontlines of eastern Ukraine.
British media reports said Biden, who meets Prime Minister Keir Starmer on Friday, was set to end objections to letting Ukraine fire long-range Storm Shadow missiles into Russia.
Britain has repeatedly pushed the United States, by far Ukraine’s biggest military supplier, to be more forward on weapons.
One key ask by Ukraine is to loosen restrictions on US-supplied Army Tactical Missile Systems, or ATACMS, which can hit targets up to 300 kilometers (190 miles) away.
Shaun Tandon, with AFP
