White House National Security Council spokesman John Kirby told reporters on Wednesday that the issue of air defense of Ukraine will be discussed when U.S. Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin visits the Ukraine Contact Group later this week.
“I’m not aware of any assessment of a specific number of of Patriot batteries that are required by Ukraine,” Kirby said. “What we are aware of is that air defense remains a priority.”
Kirby also reacted to a helicopter crash in suburban Kyiv that killed Ukraine’s interior minister and other government officials. The helicopter crashed into a kindergarten, killing Interior Minister Denys Monastyrskyi and about a dozen other people, including a child on the ground.
Kirby called the crash “heartbreaking.”
There was no immediate word on whether the helicopter crash, which occurred on a foggy morning in the capital’s eastern suburb of Brovary, was an accident or related to the war. Ukrainian authorities immediately opened an investigation. No fighting has been reported recently in the capital region.
Ukraine’s State Emergency Service, which was operating the French-manufactured Super Puma helicopter, said at least 14 people were killed, including nine on the helicopter, and a child on the ground. It said 25 people were injured, including 11 children. Early official reports gave differing numbers of casualties.
Meanwhile, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said Moscow’s goals in Ukraine are “determined by Russia’s core legitimate interests.” He claimed the goal of Ukraine’s Western allies is to use the conflict to exhaust Russia.
Russia will achieve its objectives in Ukraine despite a “hybrid war” waged by the West against Moscow, the top Russian diplomat said Wednesday.
“There must be no military infrastructure in Ukraine that poses a direct threat to our country,” Lavrov said, adding that Moscow also intends to make sure the rights of ethnic Russians in Ukraine were protected.
“Our first reaction is how dare he [Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov] compare anything to the Holocaust,” Kirby said. “Let alone a war that they started.”
Kirby also confirmed that National Security adviser Jake Sullivan is currently visiting Israel.
Sullivan will “underscore the enduring U.S. commitment to Israel security,” Kirby said.
