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US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said on Wednesday that US weapons being sent to Kiev are helping to stabilize the frontline in Ukraine amid intensified Russian attacks. He added that Washington will "adjust" its support in the future.
The senior American diplomat made the comments during a visit to the Moldovan capital Chisinau, for talks with the pro-Western president, Maia Sandu. This is his first stop on a short tour of Europe aimed at bolstering support for Kiev among NATO allies as well as neighboring countries.
The visit comes as Russian President Vladimir Putin has warned of the risk of a global conflict if the West allows Ukraine to use Western weapons to strike inside Russia. Kiev is asking its partners to allow it to do so.
The United States has previously said it has asked Kiev not to use American weapons for direct attacks on Russia. During the press conference, when asked about Washington's current position on the issue, Mr. Blinken said the United States would "adjust" its position.
" During these more than two years, while the nature of the battlefield has changed, the locations, or the means that Russia is using have changed, we have also adapted to this situation. This is exactly what we will do next ," he said.
This week, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg called on members of the Western military alliance to lift restrictions on Ukraine's use of their weapons, allowing Kiev to strike "legitimate military targets" inside Russia.
The United States is Kiev's largest supplier of weapons. Washington approved a $61 billion aid package in April after a months-long delay that further exacerbated a shortage of shells for Ukraine's artillery.
Mr Blinken said US arms supplies were already having a "real effect" and that Vladimir Putin had failed to achieve his goals in the Kharkiv area of northeastern Ukraine, where Russian forces launched an offensive this month, open a new front.
" On the contrary, I think what we are seeing again is a stabilization of the front and a failure in terms of objectives on the part of Putin ," he said.
During the joint press conference with President Sandu, Mr. Blinken promised $50 million in aid to Moldova and continued American support. He said that Moldova has shown "remarkable resilience" in the face of "pressure" and "attempts to interfere" from Russia.
Under Ms Sandu's leadership, Moldova has strongly condemned the Russian attack on Ukraine and made clear its intentions for membership in the European Union.
Ms. Sandu said Secretary Blinken's visit was "a strong sign of support" for Moldova.
" Through unity and with the support of our partners, we will stand by our people and move forward ," she said. / VOA
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