MOSCOW (Sputnik) — Moscow is thinking through its further actions in the event that the United States starts supplying lethal weapons to Ukraine, Russian Foreign Ministry's spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said Thursday.
"Of course, we are thinking through," Zakharova said, answering a question whether Russia was considering its further steps in the case of the US deliveries of lethal weapons to Ukraine.
Zakharova also criticized signatories of the Minsk agreements who were neglecting the accords' provisions.
On Tuesday, Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko announced that the US Senate had approved the allocation of $500 million to support Ukraine's security and defense sectors, adding that Kiev would receive defensive lethal weapons. This statement has not been confirmed by US officials so far.
Kiev launched a military operation in the east of Ukraine in 2014, after local residents refused to recognize the new government that came to power. Russia has repeatedly stated that the delivery of weapons to Ukraine would not contribute to the settlement of the Ukrainian crisis, nor to the implementation of the Minsk agreements. Moscow has further noted that supplying munitions might be perceived by Kiev as encouragement to continue military action.
Washington has been mulling supplying Kiev with lethal assistance for some time now. Earlier, Department of Defense spokesperson Capt. Jeff Davis said that US and Ukrainian officials continue talks on lethal defensive weapons' deliveries.
