“One of the concerns that we have about providing military assistance, as it does contain the possibility of actually expanding bloodshed, and that’s actually what we are trying to avoid,” Earnest said.
Earnest added that the United States regularly reevaluates its strategy used to settle the ongoing conflict in eastern Ukraine.
“The president [Obama] takes very seriously views of our allies and he is going to consult very closely, as we evaluate any needed strategic changes ahead,” Earnest said.
US to Avoid Military Confrontation With Russia Over Ukraine Crisis
The conflict in Ukraine will not lead to a military confrontation between the United States and Russia, White House Secretary Josh Earnest stated.
“The President noted that this conflict was not going to rise to the level of military confrontation between the United States and Russia. The President has been very clear about that,” Earnest said.
Deputy National Security Advisor Ben Rhodes, however, announced earlier that supplying weapons to Ukraine is not the way to end the crisis.
Earlier German Chancellor Angela Merkel said that Germany won’t be sending lethal weapons to Kiev.
On Thursday US Senator John McCain, along with other members of the Senate Armed Services Committee said that the United States should provide Ukraine with defensive lethal assistance and that the committee would work on a new legislation to call for the action.
The armed conflict in eastern Ukraine began in April 2014, when Kiev-led forces launched a military operation against the region’s mostly Russian-speaking independence supporters who opposed Ukraine’s new post-coup government.
