The Russian Foreign Ministry said on Friday that it had summoned senior US diplomats and expressed a strong protest in connection with the words of White House National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan about strikes on the territory of Russia.
On May 21, Sullivan said Washington does not allow Kiev to use Western weapons to strike at the territory of Russia, noting that he does not consider Crimea to be part of it.
"Senior diplomats of the US diplomatic mission in Moscow were summoned to the Russian Foreign Ministry on May 26, a strong protest was expressed about the unacceptable statements of the White House National Security Advisor J. Sullivan, who actually approved the strikes of the armed formations of the regime in Kiev on Russian territory, including the Republic of Crimea and the Belgorod region," the statement said.
"Washington's words about strikes on Crimea are hypocritical and false", the ministry said.
"The assurances of US officials that the United States does not encourage such attacks on Russia are hypocritical and false, given the direct evidence of the use of weapons and equipment supplied for the needs of the Ukraine military by the Pentagon for the preparation and implementation of terrorist acts by Ukrainian militants," the ministry stated.
It is high time that the US understands that any forms of aggression against Russia will trigger a serious response from Moscow, the ministry added.
"The Russian side emphasized that the hostile actions of the United States, which has long been a party to the conflict, plunged Russian-US relations into a deep and dangerous crisis, fraught with unpredictable consequences. It is high time for Washington to understand that any form of aggression against Russia will continue to be met with the most serious response," the ministry concluded.
Russian Ambassador Warns Against Strikes on Crimea, Raises F-16 Issue
The United States must understand that Ukrainian strikes on Crimea would be viewed as an attack on any other region of Russia, while the transfer of F-16 fighter jets to Kiev raises the question of NATO’s involvement in the conflict in Ukraine, Russian Ambassador to the US Anatoly Antonov said.
US President Joe Biden told his Ukrainian counterpart Volodymyr Zelensky at the G7 summit in Japan that the US, along with its partners, was going to launch a training program for Ukraine’s military pilots on the fourth generation fighter aircraft including F-16s.
"I would like to warn representatives of the administration against frivolous judgments on Crimea, especially in terms of ‘blessing’ the Kiev regime for air attacks on the peninsula. I’d like to remind you that strikes on this territory are considered by us as an attack on any other subject of the Russian Federation. It is important that the United States be fully aware of the Russian response," Antonov said.
He added that "every specialist knows that in Ukraine there is no infrastructure for the operation of the F-16, nor is there the required number of pilots and maintenance personnel. What will happen if American fighters take off from NATO airfields, controlled by foreign ‘volunteers’?"
On Saturday, White House National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan said that the time was yet not right for Ukraine to have F-16s, adding that the United States and its allies were going to decide which countries would supply these aircraft to Kiev and in what number.
A senior Russian diplomat said his country is analyzing the potential delivery of F-16 fighter jets to Kiev and cautioned Western regimes against further escalation in their efforts to defeat Moscow via Ukrainian proxies.
Western plans to send F-16 aircraft to Ukraine carry "enormous risks," but Moscow is taking the possibility "into account" in its military strategy, according to recent statements by Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Alexander Grushko.
When asked about the possibility that the Zelensky regime will be given F-16 aircraft on the sidelines of the 31st Assembly of the Council for Foreign and Defense Policy in Moscow Grushko described Russia’s position:
"We can see that Western countries continue to stick to an escalation scenario, which carries enormous risks for them."
"In any case, we will take it into account when making plans," Grushko explained, adding that Russia has "all the necessary means to achieve our goals."
It was a significant reversal from Washington, which repeatedly downplayed Kiev’s need for the advanced fighter jets. As recently as February, Biden declared that there’s “no basis upon which there is a rationale, according to our military, now, to provide F-16s.”
According to Western media, “Secretary of State Antony Blinken was a major force within the administration in pushing to allow [US] allies to transfer the jets, and worked extensively with different countries within NATO to move the policy forward.”
According to Western media, “Secretary of State Antony Blinken was a major force within the administration in pushing to allow [US] allies to transfer the jets, and worked extensively with different countries within NATO to move the policy forward.”
The move is seen by Moscow as a major escalation in NATO nations’ efforts to target Russia via Ukrainian proxies, and Kiev’s recent drone attacks on Russian territory have increased concerns among Russians that any new military hardware funneled into the conflict zone could be used for offensive operations outside of Ukraine.
The F-16 has an offensive range of up to 800 kilometers, and the AIM-120 AMRAAM missiles carried by the jets Ukraine is likely to receive from Poland have an additional 100 kilometer range – meaning the aircraft could hypothetically be used for another attempted strike on Moscow.
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