- President Vladimir Putin made it clear, following separate referenda held in Donetsk, Lugansk, Kherson and Zaporozhye regions in September 2022, that Moscow would defend not only Crimea but all new territories “with full force and all means at our disposal.” Russian expert community interpreted his statement that RAF may use massive quantity of hypersonic weapons and heavy strategic bombers with huge conventional bombs to protect civilians wishing to stay away from ultra-Nazi Ukraine.
- The US has again confirmed its direct involvement in the aggression of Ukraine and NATO versus Russia, Moscow's Embassy in Washington has claimed. The statement came after US Deputy Secretary of State for Political Affairs Victoria Nuland said military sites in Crimea were “legitimate targets” for Ukraine, and that her country was “supporting” strikes on them. Nuland “has admitted that the [Biden] administration is fueling the ambitions of the Kiev regime to attack our country,” the Russian Embassy argued in a statement on February 17.
The words of the high-ranking American official were clear confirmation of Russia’s position that the USA is directly involved in the conflict between Moscow and Kiev, it said. The statement added that Washington is not just using rhetoric but is also taking “concrete actions” by supplying modern weapons and advising Ukrainian military leaders, and that “de facto, they plan operations together.”
Citing American and Ukrainian officials, the ‘Washington Post’ reported last week that Kiev’s forces would not fire a single shot from artillery systems provided by the US without first confirming the coordinates of the target with the Americans. It is known that all US HIMARS MLRS are operated by active US GIs, not Ukrainians. “Inciting Kiev criminals to attack Crimea is the same as pushing them to attack Moscow or Vladivostok,” the Embassy insisted, adding that Russia would defend its territory in any case.
- The US government is weighing whether to supply Ukraine with the capability to attack the strategically important Crimean Peninsula, according to the ‘New York Times’. The discussions highlight a gradual shift among US officials toward more brazen support for Kiev, even as Washington insists it does not seek confrontation with Moscow.
The White House is warming to the idea that Ukraine may “need the power” for strikes deep inside Russian territory, namely military targets in Crimea, the NYT reported, citing several unnamed US officials.
“American officials are discussing with their Ukrainian counterparts the use of American-supplied weapons, from HIMARS rocket systems to Bradley fighting vehicles, to possibly target… Crimea,” the outlet said, adding that Washington “has come to believe that if the Ukrainian military can show Russia that its control of Crimea can be threatened, that would strengthen Kiev’s position in any future negotiations.”
Despite Moscow’s heavy fortifications on the peninsula, which hosts Russia’s Black Sea Fleet and other military bases, Crimea remains a “major focus” of Ukrainian battleplans, according to the ‘NYTimes’. It is unclear exactly how Washington hopes to assist attacks on the region, but the outlet suggested the decision to supply Kiev with Bradley infantry fighting vehicles showed willingness to help Ukraine “go on the offense – including targeting Crimea.”
Washington’s support for attacks on Crimea is “an undisguised manifestation of the bellicose attitude of the US towards our country,” the Russian Embassy in Washington underlined.
It signifies that the USA is conducting a direct aggression against the Russian Federation.
- State Department spokesman Ned Price insisted that the US is not placing any “limits” on Ukrainian strikes or “making targeting decisions” on Kiev’s behalf, the latest discussions at the White House may indicate a shift in opinion among some officials.
- On February 16 the State Duma of the Russian Federation, the lower House of Parliament, has adopted an Appeal to the United Nations with a Proposal for an Urgent Investigation by the International Community into the Crime Committed by the USA in the Baltic Sea on 26 September 2022:
“The results of an investigation by American journalist Seymour Hersh published on 8 February 2023 testify conclusively to the fact that the United States of America's military and their Norwegian accomplices committed a criminal attack on three branches of the Nord Stream and Nord Stream 2 gas pipelines in the Baltic Sea. The administration of Joe Biden, who issued the illegal order, bears full responsibility both for causing multibillion-dollar damage to the owners of the most important energy infrastructure for the Eurasian continent in Russia, Germany, France and the Netherlands and for the long-term detrimental impact of this attack on the economic development of the countries of the region as a whole, as well as for catastrophic damage to the environment.
Thanks to the courage and devotion to professional duty of Seymour Hersh, one of the most widely-acclaimed American writers and investigative journalists who gained worldwide recognition for exposing the bloody crimes committed by American executioners in the Vietnamese village of Mỹ Lai, information about this most recent crime by the United States has been made available to the whole world, which should be reason for a thorough international investigation, punishment of the perpetrators and compensation for the damage caused. [The respective Russian authorities have started to make such calculations].
The cynical desire for geopolitical hegemony in the world and economic advantage through physical elimination of natural competitors mixed with boorish caveman-like Russophobia and utter disregard for international law displayed by US leaders puts them on a par with ruthless terrorists and war criminals. Ignoring the vital interests of even their closest allies, American politicians have unleashed a sanctions war that flies straight in the face of the principles of free trade and fair competition and to this day continue to fuel, encourage and facilitate armed conflicts and carry out subversive covert operations to overthrow any constitutionally-elected governments around the world that they deem undesirable. Continuing this rabid and wholly illegal quest, they have now blown up the most important life-sustaining facilities of the entire continent.
Members of the State Duma of the Federal Assembly of the Russian Federation are appealing to the United Nations Security Council with a proposal to initiate a thorough investigation of this clear act of international terrorism, give a full legal assessment of this monstrous sabotage and bring to justice the masterminds and perpetrators of this wholly uncalled-for crime that has jeopardized the security of the entire Eurasian continent.”
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