President Biden stressed that the US would not work to overthrow Vladimir Putin and would continue to push for a diplomatic end to the war in Ukraine even as the US continued to supply arms to the nation.
“We do not seek war between NATO and Russia,” Biden wrote in an op-ed for The New York Times published Tuesday night. “As much as I disagree with Mr. Putin and find his actions outrageous, the United States will not seek to bring about his downfall in Moscow.”
The article was far more muted than the president’s comments in late March calling for Putin’s ouster.
“For God’s sake, this man can’t stay in power,” he said in an emotional speech about Putin at the time.
The Kremlin reacted furiously to the quote, and the White House quickly scrambled to clear it up, saying Biden was not calling for regime change in Moscow.
“The President believed that Putin should not exercise power over his neighbors or the region. He has not discussed Putin’s power in Russia or regime change,” a White House official said.
President Joe Biden said Tuesday night that he would arm Ukraine with “more advanced missile systems and munitions,” in a new op-ed for The New York Times outlining “what America will and will not do in Ukraine.”
Biden stressed that the US would not work to oust Vladimir Putin and would continue to push for a diplomatic end to the war in Ukraine
“As President Volodymyr Zelenskyy of Ukraine said, this war will ultimately “only end definitively through diplomacy,” the president wrote for the Times. “Each negotiation reflects the facts on the ground. We acted quickly to send Ukraine a significant amount of arms and ammunition so that it can fight on the battlefield and be in the best possible position at the negotiating table.’
However, he added that he does not publicly or privately encourage Ukraine to cede any territory to Russia.
Biden announced he would arm Ukraine with “more advanced missile systems and ammunition” in the commentary “What America Will and Won’t Do in Ukraine.”
The deployment of the intermediate-range missile systems will be limited to deployments in Ukraine, White House officials said.
“The Ukrainians have given us assurances that they will not use these systems against targets on Russian territory, so based on those assurances we are confident that they will not,” a senior White House official told reporters .
Ukrainian soldiers on the front lines of fighting in the Donbass region. The new weapons could be used to attack Russian forces in that part of Ukraine
In addition, the White House said it would not provide longer-range systems to Ukraine.
Biden stressed that the US would not encourage Ukraine to strike beyond its borders.
“We don’t want to prolong the war just to inflict pain on Russia,” he added.
Biden’s comment came on the eve of the announcement of the 11th security aid package for the war in Ukraine.
“We will continue to provide Ukraine with advanced weapons, including Javelin anti-tank missiles, Stinger anti-aircraft missiles, powerful artillery and precision missile systems, radars, unmanned aerial vehicles, Mi-17 helicopters and ammunition,” Biden said.
That package, worth $700 million, and a spares package, a White House official said.
Smoke billows in the city of Severodonetsk during fierce fighting between Ukrainian and Russian forces in eastern Ukraine’s Donbass region
Administration officials have been asked several times whether Ukraine’s leaders have promised not to use the new missiles at the border for firing inside Russia – before saying they had made the agreement.
The missiles can fly about 48 miles.
Ukrainian forces are expected to use the missiles to attack Russian forces in the Donbass region.
The package will be the first to be funded by the recent Congressional Additional Funds Act, which Biden signed into law during his Asia trip.
