The U.S. looks to label missiles to Ukraine the way it does firearms at home—for self-defense only
(Originally published June 1 in “What in the World“) Apparent setbacks for Russia in Ukraine belie an increasingly dangerous world, one increasingly split between the United States and its allies on one side and their foes on the other.
Ukraine, now armed with U.S. howitzers, has mounted a counteroffensive against floundering Russian invaders in southern Ukraine, threatening to split the land bridge the Russians have established between Russian-controlled eastern Ukraine and the Crimean peninsula.
U.S. President Joe Biden, meanwhile, may be close to reversing his rejection of Ukraine’s request for long-range multiple-launch rocket systems. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has been pleading for the MLRS, which promise to turn the tide in the war. But Biden had opposed sending them because they could be used to reach targets inside Russia. Moscow has warned that supplying Ukraine with such weapons would cross a red line.
In a press conference, a State Dept. spokesman seemed to provide rhetorical cover for a reversal, saying that Biden wouldn’t approve long-range missiles “for use beyond” Ukraine. This suggests Washington may believe it can impose conditions on Ukraine’s use of American weapons in the war. Good luck with that.
China’s spurned diplomatic deal in the Pacific, meanwhile, only highlights its vast and perhaps unassailable lead in a strategically vital region the U.S. has neglected, according to this New York Times analysis. Having already dwarfed the U.S. in terms of commercial and financial outreach, China’s attempt to secure access to airports, seaports and satellite communications posts would enable it block trans-Pacific communications, shipping, and defense.
On Tuesday, China responded to Biden’s pledge to defend Taiwan against invasion by sending 30 military aircraft into the “renegade province’s” air defense zone, prompting Taipei to scramble fighter jets. Such incursions are a routine way militaries test each other’s responses, but this was the largest such feint since January. China conducted military exercises near Taiwan last week as a warning against “collusion” with the U.S. That collusion is only expanding, however, as Illinois Senator Tammy Duckworth was the same day in Taipei along with the director of the U.S. National Guard to discuss cooperation with Taiwan’s military.
Oh, and meanwhile, the U.N.’s atomic agency says Iran now has enough uranium to build a nuclear weapon.