Kiev Welcomes US Congress Draft on Arms Supplies to Ukraine

The Ukrainian government welcomes the decision of the lower house of the US Congress to approve the supply of lethal weapons to Kiev, the Ukrainian presidential administration said Friday.

KIEV (Sputnik) — The US House of Representatives approved on Thursday the draft law "On support of stability and democracy in Ukraine," stipulating enhancement of sanctions against Russia and allowing supplies of lethal defensive weapons to the country.

"We sincerely welcome it [the draft law], and I think this is one of the results of the negotiations that President [Petro] Poroshenko held in New York [on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly]," Deputy Head of the Ukrainian Presidential Administration Konstantin Eliseev said.

The Ukrainian government has been conducting a military operation in the country's eastern regions since April 2014. In February, 2015 Kiev and the southeastern militia signed a deal on Ukrainian reconciliation in Minsk, including a ceasefire, its monitoring and verification, and the withdrawal of weapons from the line of contact, among other points.

Earlier in the day, Russia expressed concern over the possible US supplies of lethal aid to Ukraine, saying it would go against Washington’s obligations and conflict settlement in the Donbas region under the Minsk deal.