The Washington Post published an article by Senators Carl Levin and James Inhofe "Give Ukraine the weapons it needs for self-defense."
"When Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko spoke to a joint session of Congress last month, he thanked the United States for its assistance in confronting Russian aggression, and indeed, our country, along with our NATO allies, has done much. But Poroshenko asked us for more. “Blankets, night-vision goggles are also important,” he said, “but one cannot win the war with blankets,” the article begins.
"We believe now is the time to add defensive military aid, including weapons, to our support of Ukraine," the authors write. "This is a cause worth supporting. The Ukrainian people face a heavily armed insurgent force — equipped , trained and supported by Russia — and, more recently, Russia’s own military forces, seeking to establish by force the political and economic dominance Vladimir Putin desires. This aggression undermines peace and stability not just for Ukraine but also in all of Europe, and it sets the wrong precedent for international relations. That is a threat to U.S. interests. As we saw with the tragic downing of a Malaysian jetliner reportedly by Russian-supported forces, the impact of Putin’s reckless aggression is global."
"It’s important to remember what sparked Russia’s intervention: the peaceful, democratic protests of the Ukrainian people that unseated a corrupt, Putin-friendly regime. Supporting Ukraine’s desire for peace, freedom, territorial integrity and democracy supports values Americans hold dear," the senators underline.
"We and our NATO partners have taken significant steps to support Ukraine by providing more than $100 million in military assistance (including an additional $46 million of assistance announced during Poroshenko’s visit), deployments to Eastern Europe and increased military cooperation. And most important, we and our European partners have imposed biting economic sanctions that have damaged the Russian economy, plunging it toward recession and signaling to Putin that he cannot benefit from European economic strength on one hand while endangering it on the other," the article reads.
"But this aid so far has not included the weapons the Ukrainian military needs to defend itself. Ukrainian forces are suffering significant casualties from artillery fire, a result of the heavy weapons provided, and probably operated, by Russia on behalf of the rebels. At the same time, Poroshenko and the Ukrainian military have shown great restraint in resisting Russian provocations, declining to fire back at artillery coming from Russian territory and making it clear their only objective is to defend their own territory," the author write.
