Poroshenko thanks the US for the decision to supply weapons to Ukraine
The President of Ukraine, Petro Poroshenko called the US decision to allow the sale of lethal weapons to Ukraine a long long-awaited step.
The president of Ukraine wrote on his Facebook page that the head of the US State Department Rex Tillerson confirmed the information about the sale of in a telephone conversation that took place on the evening of December 22.
At the same time, the report published on the website of the Ukrainian President does not mention the topic of the sale of weapons to Ukraine.
"As agreed with the President Donald Trump, without any noise, calmly, Ukraine will receive lethal weapons from the United States," Poroshenko wrote. "This fundamental and long-awaited decision by the US administration was confirmed during my yesterday's conversation with the US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson,” the President continued.
The President of Ukraine thanked Donald Trump and "all American friends" for unwavering support of Ukraine, noting that it was overwhelming.
"American weapons in the hands of Ukrainian soldiers are not for an assault, but for a decisive response to the aggressor, protection of Ukrainian soldiers and civilians, as well as effective self-defense in accordance with Article 51 of the UN Charter," assured the Ukrainian President.
On December 20, the State Department confirmed that Donald Trump’s administration had authorized the delivery of the first shipment of small arms to Ukraine. The shipment contains self-loading large-caliber sniper rifles M107A1, ammunition, as well as related parts and accessories worth $ 41.5 million. " “The U.S. State Department has approved an export license for Ukraine to buy certain light weapons and small arms from U.S. manufacturers,” spokeswoman of the US State department, Heather Nauert said on Wednesday.
Prior to this, on December 13, 2017, the government of Canada authorized the supply of firearms to Ukraine.
A day later, the US State Department said that the US would provide Ukraine with "enhanced defensive capabilities" to help it "deter further aggression". According to the ABC News sources, Trump is ready to authorize the supply of anti-tank missile systems to Ukraine. The delivery includes 210 anti-tank missiles and 35 launchers. According to the interlocutors of the channel, the delivery may include anti-tank Javelin complexes.