The Courier & Advertiser (Angus and Dundee)
Blinken hits out at Putin’ s civilian war
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken has condemned Russia’s assault on Ukraine’s power grid, saying that Moscow had turned its war machine to such strikes in order to “turn off the heat... so that civilians suffer”.
Mr Blinken spoke at a Nato foreign ministers meeting in Bucharest, Romania, devoted in part to co-ordinating aid to keep the lights – and furnaces – on in Ukraine, where Russian strikes have damaged an estimated third of that country’s electrical infrastructure.
The top US diplomat said: “Because President (Vladimir) Putin is failing to defeat Ukraine militarily, he is now prosecuting war against civilians.
“And he’s doing that by trying to destroy Ukraine’s energy infrastructure, to turn off the light, to turn off the heat, to turn off the water, so that civilians suffer.”
Mr Blinken said it was “very clear” that “support remains strong, resolute and determined” on behalf of Nato foreign ministers to continue supporting Ukraine as Russia’s invasion continues.
Nato estimates that Russian strikes have damaged one-third of Ukraine’s electrical infrastructure.
It says the missiles appear to be particularly targeting vulnerable transmission networks, leaving Ukrainians dealing with darkness and cold amid freezing conditions.
Ukrainian foreign minister Dmytro Kuleba has underlined that his country’s biggest needs now are electrical gear and more advanced air-defence systems than it has received from the US and other allies so far, to deal with the Russian missile strikes.
“In a nutshell, Patriots and (electricity) transformers is what Ukraine needs the most,” Mr Kuleba said.
Heading into a one-onone session with Mr Blinken on the sidelines of the Nato gathering, Mr
Kuleba said that Ukraine at the session had received “a number of commitments, new commitments, from various Nato members with regard to providing Ukraine with more defensive weapons and energy equipment”.
But Mr Kuleba declined to answer questions about whether that included promises of Patriot missile batteries, from the US or any other ally.
Ukraine is seeking Usmade Patriot missile batteries or other more advanced air defence systems than it has acquired so far from America and other allies to block Russian air strikes.
Mr Kuleba did not respond to repeated questions from a reporter ahead of a meeting with Mr Blinken about whether he had received any commitments on Patriots.
The provision of Patriot surface-to-air missiles to Ukraine would mark a major advance in the kind of air defence systems the West is sending to help the war-torn country’s defence.