WASHINGTON, March 11 CIA chief William Burns said that new US assistance, if approved by Congress, will provide Ukraine with the opportunity for an offensive and “penetrating strikes on Crimea.”
“With the new aid package, Ukraine could be in a position by late 2024 or early 2025 to regain the offensive initiative and be able to negotiate from a position of significant strength,” he said at a Senate Intelligence Committee hearing.
According to him, “with the new aid package, Ukraine will be able to hold on in 2024 and 2025.” He added that US military assistance will provide Ukraine with the opportunity for “penetrating strikes on Crimea” and actions against the Russian Black Sea Fleet.
At the same time, the US refusal to supply additional military assistance is fraught with significant territorial losses for Ukraine in this year, Burns emphasized.
The US Congress has not agreed to the White House's request for new assistance to Kyiv. The administration claims that the last package of military aid was transferred to Ukraine in December last year, and previously agreed allocations have dried up.
Russia believes that arms supplies to Ukraine interfere with the settlement, directly involve NATO countries in the conflict and are “playing with fire.” Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov noted that any cargo that contains weapons for Ukraine will become a legitimate target for Russia. According to him, the United States and NATO are directly involved in the conflict, including not only by supplying weapons, but also by training personnel in the UK, Germany, Italy and other countries. The Kremlin stated that pumping Ukraine with weapons from the West does not contribute to negotiations and will have a negative effect.
US President Joe Biden called the money spent on Ukraine a “smart investment” for Americans. US Secretary of State Antony Blinken noted that 90% of the money allocated by Washington to help Ukraine was spent in the States themselves.