 "‘Putin has made a decision on Kursk incursion, everyone will be punished’, says Russian envoy to US")
Russian Ambassador to the US Anatoly Antonov said that President Vladimir Putin has devised a response to the Ukrainian military’s ongoing presence in the Kursk region, warning that those responsible for the attack will face consequences.
Antonov’s remarks followed a high-level meeting held by the Kremlin leader on Thursday. The meeting, attended by senior officials and governors of border regions, took place more than two weeks after Ukraine launched its largest incursion into Russian territory since World War II. However, Antonov did not elaborate on the specifics of Putin’s plans.
“I tell you sincerely that the president has made a decision,” the TASS state news agency quoted Antonov as saying late on Thursday. “I am firmly convinced that everyone will be severely punished for what has happened in Kursk region.”
Antonov, who has served in his post since 2017, also warned in comments published by the RIA state news agency that the U.S. will at some point remove all restrictions on the use of weapons supplied to Ukraine.
“The current administration behaves like a person who extends one hand and holds a dagger behind their back with another one,” Antonov said, describing Washington’s recent comments about Kyiv not being allowed to use U.S. weapons for strikes deep into Russian territory as “goading”.
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More Shorts“They are, essentially, laying ground (for a decision) to simply remove all the existing restrictions at a certain point, without much thought,” he said.
The United States has provided Ukraine with more than $55 billion worth of military aid since 2022, but has limited the use of its weapons to Ukrainian soil and counterfire, defensive cross-border operations.
The Biden administration will send about $125 million in new military aid to Ukraine, U.S. officials said Thursday, even as Washington works to get a better understanding of Kyiv’s incursion into Russia and how it advances the broader battlefield goals more than two years into the war.
US officials said the latest package of aid includes air defense missiles, munitions for High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems (HIMARS), Javelins and an array of other anti-armor missiles, counter-drone and counter-electronic warfare systems and equipment, 155mm and 105mm artillery ammunition, vehicles and other equipment.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy made his first visit Thursday to the border area where his forces launched their surprise offensive into Russia, saying that Kyiv’s military had taken control of another Russian village and captured more prisoners of war.
While in Ukraine’s northern Sumy region, Zelenskyy said the new POWs from the Russian region of Kursk would help build an “exchange fund” to swap for captured Ukrainians.
A visit to Kyiv by Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who is meeting Friday with President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, is being closely watched. Modi, who has maintained cordial ties and economic relations with Russian President Vladimir Putin, could play a role in forging a mediated peace.
But the incursion into Russia itself is risky. It has highlighted Russian vulnerabilities but also further stretched Ukrainian forces, who were already fighting on a frontline running for hundreds of kilometers.
With inputs from agencies.
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