U.S. provides aid to Ukraine, refrains from lethal weapons

US Vice President Joe Biden told Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko in a March 11 phone call that the U.S. will send small unarmed drones, armored Humvees and other assistance to Ukraine in its fight against Russian-backed separatists, the Associated Press reported, citing White House Press Secretary Josh Earnest. Lethal weapons were not included, to the dismay of some U.S. lawmakers, the AP report said. The new aid includes unmanned drones to help defend Ukrainian forces and enhance their communication, radios and secure communications equipment, radars to warn and protect against mortar and artillery fire and medical equipment, including military ambulances, Earnest said.

U.S. President Barack Obama is still considering whether to send weapons to Ukraine’s military, weighing the risks that such aid could further inflame the conflict, Earnest said. “The bloodshed is something that we’re trying to avoid and de-escalate,” he said. “So the president is very mindful of the potential risk that’s associated with providing additional lethal military assistance to the Ukrainians.”

The U.S. Treasury Department announced on March 11 it has imposed new sanctions against Russian and Ukrainian organizations and citizens who have supported the violation of Ukraine’s sovereignty, separatist leaders and fighters and officials of the administration of former President Viktor Yanukovych. The sanctions consist of asset freezes on U.S. territory and a prohibition on U.S. citizens engaging in business with these individuals and organizations, such as Russian National Commercial Bank.

The announced sanctions are analogous to those approved by the EU and Canada in mid-February. Among the Ukrainian citizens targeted are former Prime Minister Mykola Azarov, First Deputy Prime Minister Serhiy Arbuzov, former Health Minister Raisa Bohatyriova, as well as various ministers in the Donetsk and Luhansk People’s Republics.

Zenon Zawada: The U.S. government has dispatched the military aid and imposed new sanctions in lieu of lethal, defensive weapons in order to demonstrate its ongoing support to the Ukrainian government and public. Naturally, it’s in the interest of the investment community to support efforts at peace. But as it has been said, the best ensurer of peace is a strong defense. Separatist leaders have already said they aim to take control of such key industrial cities as Mariupol and Kharkiv, Ukraine’s second-largest. In refraining from providing weapons, the West has left the territories surrounding the occupied zone vulnerable to attack and should be prepared for the possible consequences.