Photo: Reuters
President Joe Biden has authorized the supply of anti-personnel land mines to Ukraine, according to a US official who spoke to Reuters. This move is expected to aid in slowing down Russian advances in eastern Ukraine, particularly when combined with other munitions provided by the United States. The official stated that the United States anticipates Ukraine will deploy these mines within its own territory, ensuring they are not used in areas populated by Ukrainian civilians. This development was first reported by The Washington Post. Neither the office of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy, the Ukrainian defense ministry, the Russian defense ministry, nor the Kremlin responded promptly to Reuters' requests for comment. The United States has been supplying Ukraine with anti-tank mines throughout its conflict with Russia. The inclusion of anti-personnel mines is intended to impede the progress of Russian ground forces, the official added, speaking on condition of anonymity. The US mines differ from those used by Russia as they are "non-persistent" and become inert after a predetermined period. They require a battery to function and will not detonate once the battery is depleted. On Tuesday, Ukraine utilized US ATACMS missiles to strike into Russian territory, taking advantage of newly granted permission from Biden's administration on the war's 1,000th day. Moscow condemned the use of ATACMS, the longest-range missiles supplied by Washington to Ukraine, as a clear indication that the West seeks to escalate the conflict. In response, Russian President Vladimir Putin reduced the threshold for a nuclear strike in response to a broader range of conventional attacks. This decision followed months of warnings to the West that if Washington permitted Ukraine to fire US, British, and French missiles deep into Russia, Moscow would view NATO members as directly involved in the war in Ukraine.
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