Biden administration reportedly weighs U.S. backing for Ukraine insurgents should Russia invade
The Biden administration is weighing whether the United States could back insurgents in Ukraine should Russian President Vladimir Putin invade, The Washington Post columnist David Ignatius reports.
The report cites a "knowledgeable official" and describes how the administration is studying whether the U.S. could provide weapons, potentially including anti-aircraft missiles, and "other support to the Ukrainian military to resist invading Russian forces," as well as "similar logistical support to insurgent groups if Russia topples the Ukrainian government and a guerrilla war begins."
According to the Post, a Biden administration task force is examining how assistance could be provided in a way that wouldn't violate any domestic or international laws.
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
President Biden previously said that sending U.S. troops to Ukraine is "not on the table," CNN reports. He also said he warned Putin that should the Russian president invade Ukraine, "there will be severe ... economic consequences like none he's ever seen or ever have been seen."
Russia has been continuing to amass troops near the border with Ukraine, CNN reports. "The Biden administration still sees a window to deter a Russian invasion, assessing that Putin has not yet decided whether to launch an attack," CNN writes.
A senior administration official told reporters that the U.S. is "preparing the severe consequences that would result if Russia decides to take the path of further aggression," which "largely" include "economic and financial measures," but they added that the U.S. is also "prepared to consider a number of things that we have not considered in the past." Read more at The Washington Post.
-
5 cinematic cartoons about Bezos betting big on 'Melania'Cartoons Artists take on a girlboss, a fetching newspaper, and more
-
The fall of the generals: China’s military purgeIn the Spotlight Xi Jinping’s extraordinary removal of senior general proves that no-one is safe from anti-corruption drive that has investigated millions
-
Why the Gorton and Denton by-election is a ‘Frankenstein’s monster’Talking Point Reform and the Greens have the Labour seat in their sights, but the constituency’s complex demographics make messaging tricky
-
The ‘mad king’: has Trump finally lost it?Talking Point Rambling speeches, wind turbine obsession, and an ‘unhinged’ letter to Norway’s prime minister have caused concern whether the rest of his term is ‘sustainable’
-
Trump sues IRS for $10B over tax record leaksSpeed Read The president is claiming ‘reputational and financial harm’ from leaks of his tax information between 2018 and 2020
-
Trump, Senate Democrats reach DHS funding dealSpeed Read The deal will fund most of the government through September and the Department of Homeland Security for two weeks
-
Fed holds rates steady, bucking Trump pressureSpeed Read The Federal Reserve voted to keep its benchmark interest rate unchanged
-
Judge slams ICE violations amid growing backlashSpeed Read ‘ICE is not a law unto itself,’ said a federal judge after the agency violated at least 96 court orders
-
Rep. Ilhan Omar attacked with unknown liquidSpeed Read This ‘small agitator isn’t going to intimidate me from doing my work’
-
Democrats pledge Noem impeachment if not firedSpeed Read Trump is publicly defending the Homeland Security secretary
-
The billionaires’ wealth tax: a catastrophe for California?Talking Point Peter Thiel and Larry Page preparing to change state residency
