“The raid of Russian forces near the Polish border proves that President Putin is expanding the vector of attack,” Jake Sullivan, the national security adviser to the president, said Sunday. He also warned China against helping Moscow.
Sullivan said the attack by Russian troops in the Lviv region near the Polish border “expresses Putin’s frustration with the lack of progress” in Russia’s offensive in Ukraine.
On Sunday morning, the Russian air force attacked the International Center for Peace and Security Operations, better known as the military training ground Yavor, in the Lviv region in western Ukraine, near the border with Poland. According to regional authorities, 35 people died and 134 were injured as a result of the raid.
US support
“The US has no plans for US operations in Ukraine, but it will increase aid to that country, including by supplying anti-aircraft weapons to Ukrainians,” Sullivan said.
“Washington and its allies will put more and more pressure on Russia,” he added, warning China that any move to help Moscow or make it easier to circumvent Western sanctions would have “certain” consequences for Beijing.
As he emphasized, he told China that the US would not allow any country to “compensate Russia” for the losses and costs of financial restrictions.
“Open Channels of Communication”
Reuters, citing sources, said Sullivan will meet with Chinese Communist Party leader Yang Jiechi on Monday in Rome as part of an effort to keep communication channels open between Washington and Beijing. Moreover, the topic of their talks is the impact of the war in Ukraine on the security of the world and the region.
Sullivan will then also speak with Italian Prime Minister Diplomatic Adviser Luigi Mattiolo about a coordinated Western response to Russian aggression in Ukraine.