West does not desire peace in Ukraine: NYT

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A report issued by the New York Times said that the latest round of military assistance to Ukraine from the US, France and Germany indicates clearly that the West in no way wants to encourage peace talks between Russia and Ukraine and is rather pushing for more offensives to be unleashed against Moscow amid the latest delivery of armored vehicles to Kiev.

Yesterday, in its latest aid package to Kiev, the White House said it intends to supply Ukraine with 50 Bradley vehicles for the first time ever. 

On January 5, in a phone conversation with Biden, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz said that Berlin intended to hand over the Marder infantry fighting vehicles and a Patriot air defense battery to Ukraine.

A pivotal point in Western military support for Ukraine. The U.S. will supply Kyiv with Bradley M2 infantry fighting vehicles, Germany with Marders, plus Berlin is dispatching another Patriot battery to Kyiv. France already said it will send light tanks. Taboos have fallen. pic.twitter.com/ZvlPxDFqZp

— Yaroslav Trofimov (@yarotrof) January 5, 2023

And on January 4, French President Emmanuel Macron vowed to supply Kiev with a number of AMX-10 RC armored combat vehicles.

These decisions clarify "Western support for Ukraine for a potential offensive in the months to come," Ulrich Speck, a German foreign policy analyst, said as quoted by The New York Times on Friday, "And it signals Moscow that we’re not on the trajectory to peace negotiations soon," he added.

The Pentagon said on Friday that the latest military assistance package for Ukraine, worth $3.75 billion includes 50 Bradley fighting vehicles, 500 TOW anti-tank missiles, and 250,000 rounds of 22mm ammunition, and will also include 100 M113 Armored Personel Carriers, 55 Mine Resistant Ambush Protected Vehicles (MRAPs), 13 High Mobility Multipurpose Wheeled Vehicles (HMMWVs), 70,000 155mm artillery rounds, 500 precision-guided 155mm artillery rounds, and 1,200 155mm artillery rounds of the Remote Anti-Armor Mine (RAAM) system. 

The package additionally provides Ukraine with 36 105mm towed Howitzers, 95,000 105mm artillery rounds, 10,000 120mm mortar rounds, additional ammunition for HIMARS, and approximately 2,000 anti-armor rockets. 

It will also include - for the first time ever - the Sea Sparrow anti-aircraft, anti-missile weapon systems which will be integrated into the Soviet Buk surface-to-air missile system 

Read more: US considers dumping Vietnam-era SAMs by sending them to Kiev

Equipment may become logistics burden for Ukraine

"The Ukrainians are planning to do more offensive operations against dug-in Russian positions, so getting better infantry fighting vehicles to get close to defensive positions is important," Rob Lee, a military analyst at the Foreign Policy Research Institute, told The New York Times.

The report adds that the variety of equipment might become a logistics burden for Ukrainian troops due to them having different parts, different ammo, and different modes of operation.

According to White House Spokesperson Karine Jean-Pierre, $682 million of the $3.75 billion package will be allocated to assist European partners to reinforce NATO's presence in the eastern flank and $225 million to revamp Ukraine's military and build its long-term capacity.

The Russian Embassy in Germany had said on Friday that the decision to deliver more weapons to Kiev effectively confirms that the West is not interested in finding a peaceful resolution to the conflict.

It said in an official statement that Germany has crossed the moral line by deciding to supply Ukraine with heavy military equipment, describing the move as "another step towards the escalation of the conflict in Ukraine." 

Likewise, Russia's Ambassador to the US, Anatoly Antonov, said on Thursday that the move indicates that the US does not want any peace or political settlement for the war in Ukraine. 

"This step [the delivery of Bradley fighting vehicles] comes as a confirmation that our interlocutors in the United States have not even tried to listen to our numerous calls to take into account possible consequences of such a dangerous course by Washington," Antonov relayed to journalists, adding that "nobody should still have doubts who bears responsibility for prolonging this conflict. All the actions by the Administration indicate a lack of any desire for a political settlement."

Discussions about the "defensive nature" of weapons supplied by Western countries has become "absurd," as he continued that "it is finally becoming clear to the whole international community that in 2014 the US unleashed a real proxy-war against Russia by supporting nazi criminals in Kiev."

Read more: Military resignations in Germany increase by 500%