Biden affirms US support, declares $50 mn in new aid
In the midst of US Vice President Joe Biden’s visit to Ukraine, the State Department has released photographic images which, it asserts, are “evidence” that the armed separatists calling the shots in eastern Ukraine are actually Russian undercover troops.
“These are just further evidence of the connection between Russia and the armed militants,” spokesperson Jen Psaki said on a day when Biden in meetings with Ukrainian leaders pledged American support as the trouble-torn nation deals with a politico-economic crisis and braces for a presidential election next month. Drawn from photos supplied by Ukrainian diplomats and ones taken from the Internet, the State Department’s 11-page compilation reportedly includes pictures of men in the eastern Ukrainian city of Slovyansk carrying the same type of RPG-30 rocket launchers that are issued to Russian troops.
Asked how confident Washington was about its conclusions of Russian involvement, Psaki said: “We’ve stated the case pretty strongly publicly before these photos were out there….in terms of our belief that there’s a strong connection between Russia and the armed militants that we’ve seen in eastern Ukraine and Crimea and other places. So this is more just further photographic evidence of that.” “I will let you all draw the conclusions yourself as to whether these are individuals who look similar or not to other events,” she said, noting that several of the photos have already been out on Twitter and in the international media.
Vice President Biden, meanwhile, had a series of meetings in the Ukrainian capital of Kiev. He met Acting President Oleksandr V. Turchynov, Acting Prime Minister Arseniy Yatsenyuk and other leaders of the fledgling pro-Western government.
Biden announced $50 million in new aid to the beleaguered nation, apart from the $1 billion already offered in loan guarantees. An additional $8 million will go towards provision of non-lethal military assistance for Ukraine’s armed forces and border guards. At the same time, Biden urged Ukrainians to “fight the cancer of corruption that is endemic in your system right now”.
The new package is aimed at helping Ukraine pursue political and economic reform and strengthen the partnership between the two countries, a State Department fact sheet said. In his address to Ukraine’s parliament in Kiev, Biden said: “The opportunity to generate a united Ukraine and getting it right is within your grasp. And we want to be your partner and friend in the project. We’re ready to assist.”
Biden renewed the US call on Russia to pull back its troops from Ukraine’s borders, telling Moscow that it was time to “stop talking and start acting” to de-escalate tensions. He made it clear that Washington would never recognize Russia’s recent annexation of Crimea. Biden said the US would stand with Ukraine as it prepared for presidential polls election on May 25.