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Kiev Repeats Call for Lethal Weapons' Supplies to Ukraine

© AP Photo / Evgeniy MaloletkaUkrainian serviceman stands near tanks at an apartment house in Avdiivka, eastern Ukraine, Thursday, Feb. 2, 2017
Ukrainian serviceman stands near tanks at an apartment house in Avdiivka, eastern Ukraine, Thursday, Feb. 2, 2017 - Sputnik International
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Ukraine needs lethal arms supplies as well as close multilateral cooperation with the United States and the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), Ukrainian Foreign Minister Pavlo Klimkin said on Saturday.

KIEV (Sputnik) — At present, US military assistance to Kiev is limited to supplying uniforms and equipment, including counter-battery radars, drones and means of secure communication.

"We surely need it [lethal arms]. Actually, I have always said that I don't like this division [of arms] into lethal and non-lethal. There is a distinct notion of defensive arms. And we need it. We surely need more high-technology weapons, we need effective cooperation with the United States and NATO in many fields," Klimkin told the Mirror Weekly newspaper.

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In September 2016, the US House of Representatives approved legislation to allow the supply of lethal "defensive" weapons to Ukraine, but the law still needs to be approved by the US Senate and signed by the US President.

Russian officials have repeatedly warned against arms deliveries to Ukraine, stressing that it would only escalate the situation in the eastern part of the country.

Different European politicians, including former OSCE Chairman and German President-elect Frank-Walter Steinmeier, as well as NATO Military Committee Chairman Peter Pavel have also spoken against arms deliveries to Ukraine.

The Ukrainian government has been conducting a military operation in the country's eastern regions since April 2014, after local residents refused to recognize the new government in Kiev. In February 2015, Kiev and the Donbass militias signed a ceasefire deal. Despite the agreement, both sides have been reporting violations of the ceasefire.

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