Russia threatens action over US missiles
Calls push for Patriot system ‘provocative’
KYIV — Russia’s Foreign Ministry warned Thursday that if the United States confirms reports it plans to deliver sophisticated air defense missiles to Ukraine, it would be “another provocative move by the US” that could prompt a response from Moscow.
Ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova said in a weekly briefing that the United States had “effectively become a party” to the war in Ukraine, following reports that it will provide Kyiv with Patriot surface-to-air missiles, the most advanced the West has yet offered to help repel Russian aerial attacks.
Growing amounts of US military assistance, including the transfer of such sophisticated weapons, “would mean even broader involvement of military personnel in the hostilities and could entail possible consequences,” Zakharova added.
She did not specify what the consequences might be.
US officials said Tuesday that Washington was poised to approve sending a Patriot missile battery to Ukraine, finally agreeing to an urgent request from Ukrainian leaders desperate for more robust weapons to shoot down incoming Russian missiles that have crippled much of the country’s vital infrastructure. An official announcement is expected soon.
Operating and maintaining a Patriot battery requires as many as 90 troops, and for months the United States has been reluctant to provide the complex system because sending American forces into Ukraine to operate the systems is a nonstarter for the administration of President Biden.
Even without the presence of US service members to train Ukrainians on use of the system, concerns remain that deployment of the missiles could provoke Russia or risk that a fired projectile could hit inside Russia and further escalate the conflict.
Before reports emerged on the delivery of Patriot systems, Dmitry Medvedev, deputy head of Russia’s Security Council, which is chaired by President Vladimir Putin, warned that if Patriots enter Ukraine “along with NATO personnel, they will immediately become a legitimate target for our armed forces.”
Asked Wednesday whether the Kremlin backs that threat, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov answered yes, but added in a conference call with reporters that he would refrain from more detailed comment until the US officially announces the Patriot delivery to Ukraine.
Two defense officials said Russia’s warnings would not change the calculation about what weapons the US would provide. The officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to talk publicly about the issue.
Ukraine has so far been cautious in reacting to the reports. Hanna Maliar, Ukraine’s deputy defense minister, told reporters Thursday in Kyiv that the delivery of such weaponry remains “sensitive not only for Ukraine, but for our partners,” and that only President Volodymyr Zelensky or Defense Minister Oleksiy Reznikov would make any official announcement on such an agreement.
White House and Pentagon leaders have said consistently that providing Ukraine with additional air defenses is a priority, and Patriot missiles have been under consideration for some time.
As the winter closed in and the Russian bombardment of civilian infrastructure escalated, official said, the idea became a higher priority.
Ukraine’s electricity provider said Thursday that the country’s energy system had a “significant deficit of electricity,” and that emergency shutdowns had been applied in some areas as temperatures hover around or below freezing.
The state-owned grid operator Ukrenergo warned in a statement on Facebook that damage caused to energy infrastructure by Russian attacks is being compounded by harsh weather, including snow, ice, and strong winds.
Meanwhile, the United States is expanding the number of Ukrainian troops it instructs at a base in Germany, with a new focus on advanced battlefield tactics, the Pentagon announced Thursday.
The expanded training would emphasize “combined arms” warfare — tight coordination among infantry, artillery, armored vehicles and, when it is available, air support,” according to The New York Times.