Pentagon Press Secretary John Kirby on Tuesday reiterated the Defense Department’s interest in seeing Russia weakened so it cannot threaten its geographic neighbors.
“Russia continues to isolate itself, its economy is in tatters, its military has been depleted in many ways … they are a weaker military, they are a weaker state right now,” Kirby said in an interview with CNN. “We don’t want to see Russia able to conduct this kind of invasion again in the future.”
Kirby also responded to comments made by Russia’s foreign minister Sergei Lavrov on raising the specter of nuclear war, calling them “obviously unhelpful, not constructive and certainly not indicative of what a responsible nuclear power ought to be doing in a public sphere.”
– Ella Lee
The U.S. and its allies “will keep moving heaven and earth” to support Ukraine’s efforts to repel the Russian invasion, Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said Tuesday. Austin met with officials from dozens of countries at the United States’ Ramstein Air Base in Germany to work out ways to aid to Ukraine’s military. Guests included Ukrainian Defense Minister Oleksiy Reznikov.
“Russia’s invasion is indefensible,” Austin said. “So are Russian atrocities.”
He said the invasion was an effort to “indulge the ambitions of one man” – Russian President Vladimir Putin. More than 30 allies and partners have joined the U.S. in sending security assistance to Ukraine, committing more than $5 billion worth of equipment.
“All of us have your back. And that’s why we’re here today – to strengthen the arsenal of Ukrainian democracy,” he said. “Russia has sought as its principal aim to totally subjugate Ukraine, to take away its sovereignty, to take away its independence. That has failed.”
