Russia Criticizes Plan to Supply United States Long-Range Missiles to Ukraine

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov while attending the G20 Summit in Bali. (Twitter/@mfa_russia)

JAKARTA - The United States is controlling military action in Ukraine, said Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov in a comment on the "Moscow, Kremlin, Putin" program broadcast on the Rossiya-1 television channel.

"No matter what he says, they (the US) control this war, they supply weapons, ammunition, intelligence information, data from satellites. They are pursuing war against us," he said on the sidelines of the Eastern Economic Forum (EEF), commenting on the US statement about readiness to supply long-range missiles to Ukraine, reported by TASS, September 18.

Lavrov said the possible supply of long-range missiles to Kyiv by Western countries would not change the essence of what is happening in Ukraine.

"I can't comment on their statement, but the fact that it will not change the essence of what is happening in Ukraine is clear. What is happening is that Ukraine has been prepared, has long been prepared to inflict a strategic defeat on Russia by using its hands and his body," explained Foreign Minister Lavrov.

It is known that the United States recently announced possible plans to provide military assistance in the form of uranium ammunition and long-range missiles to Ukraine.

Two weeks ago, the Pentagon said Uncle Sam's country would provide Ukraine with a military aid package worth 175 million US dollars. The package is said to include air defense equipment, artillery ammunition, anti-tank weapons, including uranium ammunition for Abrams tanks, as quoted by Reuters.

Last week, Ukraine potentially acquired long-range missiles equipped with cluster bombs from the United States, as the Joe Biden Administration neared approval of the plan, giving Kyiv the ability to cause significant damage deeper into Russian-occupied territory, according to four U.S. officials.

The White House declined to comment on the report. Meanwhile, the decision to send ATACMS (Army Tactical Missile System) or GMLRS (Guided Multiple Launch System), or both, is not final and could still fail, the four sources said.

US President Joe Biden's own administration has struggled for months with decisions regarding ATACMS, fearing that sending them would be seen as too aggressive a move against Russia.