US senators call for arming Ukraine

A number of senior US congressmen have called on President Barack Obama’s administration to provide the Ukrainian government with weapons to use against pro-Russian fighters.

On Sunday, the leading American senators said Washington should supply weapons for the government forces of the crisis-hit country.

Earlier in the day, Russian President Vladimir Putin said the neighboring Ukraine should “hold substantive, meaningful talks, not about technical issues but about the question of the political organization of society and statehood in southeast Ukraine.”

Robert Menendez, the head of the US Senate Foreign Relations Committee, called the situation in eastern Ukraine as part of Russia’s “aggression.”

Speaking to US media outlets later, Menendez said Washington “should provide the Ukrainians with the type of defensive weapons that will impose a cost upon Putin for further aggression.”

Senator John McCain also made comments in this regard, saying, “This is not an incursion. This is an invasion… This is no longer the question of some rebel separatists. This is a direct invasion by Russia. We must recognize it as that.”

McCain also called for “strong sanctions” on Moscow, saying, “Give them (Ukrainians) the weapons they need. Give them the wherewithal they need. Give them the ability to fight.”

Ukraine’s mainly Russian-speaking regions in the east have witnessed deadly clashes between pro-Russia protesters and the Ukrainian army since Kiev launched military operations to silence the pro-Russians.

The political unrest in eastern Ukraine has so far claimed the lives of more than 2,500 people, according to figures released by the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR).

Nearly 300,000 people have also been forced to flee their homes due to fierce fighting in the east, according to the UN.

NT/MAM/AS