MOSCOW, Sept. 4 — The U.S. recent approval of the sale of 3,350 air-launched Extended-Range Attack Munitions system missiles to Ukraine runs counter to its claimed willingness to resolve the conflict in Ukraine by diplomatic means, said Russian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova on Thursday.
Russia has repeatedly pointed out that military assistance to Ukraine will essentially only “prolong its suffering” and risk causing the conflict to spiral out of control, she added.
Zakharova made the remarks at a press conference during the 10th Eastern Economic Forum being held in Russia’s far eastern city of Vladivostok, which runs from Sept. 3 to 6.
The United States on Aug. 28 announced the approval of the missile sale worth 825 million U.S. dollars, funded mainly by some European countries, according to media reports.
The move came after U.S. President Donald Trump met earlier in August with Russian President Vladimir Putin and separately with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.
The Wall Street Journal newspaper reported that the missiles will be delivered to Ukraine in about six weeks. Regarding European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen’s recent remarks about “pretty precise plans” for European troops to be deployed to Ukraine post-conflict, Zakharova told a press conference that such a move “will undermine the security of everyone” and is “fundamentally unacceptable.” (Xinhua)
