U.S. hasn't stopped military aid for Ukraine, only some shipments halted - State Dept
WASHINGTON. July 3 (Interfax) - The U.S. Department of Defense's decision to suspend shipments of some weapons to Ukraine does not mean that Washington has fully stopped military support for Kiev, Department of State spokesperson Tammy Bruce said.
"This is not a cessation of us assisting Ukraine or of providing weapons. This is one event in one situation," Bruce said at a press briefing on Wednesday.
U.S. media reported earlier that the U.S. halted shipments of some weapons to Ukraine, including Patriot interceptors and Hellfire, Stinger and AIM missiles. The U.S. authorities later confirmed this information. The U.S. administration, in turn, said this decision was made because these weapon stocks had fallen too low.
Meanwhile, the Politico online newspaper said, citing numerous sources, that after the U.S. halted shipments of some weapons to Ukraine, Kiev plans to ask Washington to allow Europe to purchase U.S. weapons for Ukraine.
"[Vladimir] Zelensky has been forced to change his approach on acquiring new weapons. We don't have a choice," a Ukrainian official told Politico.
Meanwhile, several European countries are exploring plans to buy U.S.-made weapons from their defense budgets for transfer to Ukraine. This money would count toward the new NATO defense spending number, "but there have been no solid commitments yet," Politico said.
These transfers would have to be approved by the U.S. administration, and details are now being discussed, one of the media outlet's sources said.
One of potential hurdles involves restrictions the U.S. normally places on allies using American weaponry, Politico said.
As previously reported, the U.S. halted shipments of some weapons to Ukraine due to worries that U.S. weapons stockpiles have fallen too low. This decision was made based on a review conducted by the Department of Defense.
The weapons being delayed include dozens of Patriot interceptors, thousands of 155mm artillery rounds, more than 100 Hellfire missiles, more than 250 GMLR precision-guided missile systems, dozens of Stinger surface-to-air missiles, AIM air-to-air missiles, and grenade launchers.
