‘Doesn’t align with attempts for peaceful resolution’: Russia warns US against sending more weapons to Ukraine

The Kremlin on Tuesday (Jul 8) warned that sending more weapons to Ukraine would prolong the war between Russia and Ukraine that has been going on for more than three years. It added that the move does not align with attempts to promote a peaceful resolution. This comes a day after US President Donald Trump said that he would “have to send more weapons” to Ukraine to defend itself. Trump’s announcement followed Washington’s statement last week that it was halting some weapons shipments to Kyiv.

“It is obvious of course that these actions probably do not align with attempts to promote a peaceful resolution,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov was quoted by Russian news agencies as saying in a briefing. Peskov also criticised European nations for “actively contributing to the continuation of hostilities” with their arms supplies to Ukraine.

“We’re going to have to send more weapons – defensive weapons primarily,” Trump had told reporters at the White House. “They’re getting hit very, very hard,” he spoke of Ukraine, adding that he was “not happy” with Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Despite the mounting pressure from the US and European countries, Putin has not shown a willingness to end the conflict, which started after Russia launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022.

The US president’s statement came after Moscow said on Monday (Jul 7) that its forces had captured their first village in Ukraine’s central Dnipropetrovsk region. Last month, Russia said that it had crossed the border into the region first time in its campaign.

Before Russia’s announcement, it had launched a fresh large-scale drone and missile attack. The strikes also targeted Ukraine’s military recruitment centres. In a statement, Kyiv also said that it carried out a drone attack on a Russian ammunition factory in the Moscow region.