Pentagon's surprise statement on the risk of escalation in Ukraine

Shortly after the conflict with Russia broke out, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky urgently requested the United States to provide long-range weapons, including MGM-140 ATACMS tactical ballistic missiles with enough range for his troops to strike behind Russian positions.

US President Joe Biden repeatedly publicly rejected the possibility of transferring this type of missile for fear of escalating the conflict, but eventually “relented”. ATACMS has actually reached Ukraine and was first used by its soldiers to attack Russian air bases on the southern and eastern frontlines last October.

The ATACMS missiles sent to Ukraine were actually older versions, with a range of only 160-180km, half that of the new version.

World - Pentagon's surprising statement on the risk of escalation in Ukraine — The US Army Tactical Missile System (ATACMS) fires during a joint exercise with South Korea. Photo: Business Insider

As the conflict enters its third year with no end in sight and no breakthrough in sight, the US Department of Defense has made a surprising statement: The risk of escalation in Ukraine is not as high as before.

“My sense is that the risk of escalation is not as high as it first appeared,” said Charles Q. Brown Jr., chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, during a meeting with the Defense Writers Group, an association of defense and national security reporters with 50 member news organizations around the world, including the Russian state news agency TASS.

Gen. CQ Brown’s comments came as he addressed the possibility of transferring ATACMS missiles from the US to Ukraine. The Biden administration has been reluctant to confirm or deny media reports on the subject.

Brown did not officially confirm or deny the report, but the top U.S. general said Russia’s muted response to a recent series of Ukrainian drone attacks inside Russian territory had allowed the Pentagon to adjust its analysis of the risk of sending ATACMS.

“Those are the things that we pay attention to. You know, determining what the potential for escalation is based on different capabilities and different actions…”, he said.

World - The Pentagon's surprising statement about the risk of escalation in Ukraine (Image 2). — Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Charles Q. Brown Jr. Photo: US Department of Defense Website

Ukraine has been losing territory recently, and some experts say that if the US Congress fails to pass an additional $60 billion aid package for Ukraine, Russia could move further this spring.

General Brown again encouraged his country’s Congress to pass the aid package quickly, saying Ukraine would face continued shelling for the foreseeable future. But he also said fears of a major Russian offensive in the spring may be overblown.

“I don’t know if the Russians can mount a major attack. I mean, if you look at what’s happened over the course of the past year, the Russians have really committed a lot of capabilities, manpower, weapons systems and assets to achieving what they’ve achieved.”

The Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff is the highest-ranking military officer in the United States and the chief military advisor to the President, Secretary of Defense, and National Security Council of the United States .

Minh Duc (According to TASS, Defense One, National Defense Magazine)

Source