Russia threatens US with 'retaliation' after Ukrainian army strikes in Crimea

On June 24, the Kremlin placed full responsibility on the United States for the attack on Crimea using American-supplied ATACMS missiles. The attack killed at least four people and injured 151. Moscow officially warned the US Ambassador about possible retaliatory measures, reports Reuters.

Фото: Depositphotos

The war in Ukraine has deepened the crisis in relations between Russia and the West. Russian officials say the conflict is entering its most dangerous phase. But directly blaming the United States for the attack on Crimea is something new. Russia annexed Crimea in 2014, although most countries around the world consider it part of Ukraine.

“You should ask my colleagues in Europe and above all in Washington why their governments are killing Russian children,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters.

At least two children were killed in an attack on Sevastopol on June 23, Russian officials said. People fled from the beach near Sevastopol, and some of the wounded had to be evacuated on stretchers. Kyiv has not commented on the attack, but denies that the strike was aimed at civilians.

Russia said the US supplied the weapons and the US military provided data to guide the missiles to their targets.

The Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs summoned US Ambassador Lynn Tracy and told her that Washington was waging a hybrid war against Russia and had actually become a party to the conflict. “Retaliatory measures will certainly follow,” the statement said.

Tracy expressed Washington's regret over the civilian deaths, State Department spokesman Matthew Miller told reporters, adding that Washington is providing weapons to Ukraine so it can defend its sovereign territory, including Crimea.

Pentagon spokesman Major Charlie Dietz said that “Ukraine makes its own decisions about targets and conducts its own military operations.”

On the subject: Financiers predict a new global economic crisis: the war in Ukraine played a significant role in its development

A US official later said Ukraine was not targeting civilians. Most likely, the Russians were able to intercept an ATACMS missile that was targeting a missile launcher. Fragments of the exploded rocket fell onto the beach.

President Vladimir Putin has repeatedly warned of the risk of a wider war involving the world's biggest nuclear powers, although he has said Russia does not want conflict with the US-led NATO alliance.

American answer

US President Joe Biden has ruled out the possibility of sending American troops to participate in hostilities in Ukraine. Shortly after the start of a full-scale Russian invasion in 2022, he declared that a direct clash between NATO and Russia would mean World War III.

Putin portrays the war in Ukraine as part of a broader conflict with the United States, which he says ignored Moscow's interests after the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991 and then plotted to divide Russia and seize its natural resources.

Western leaders and Ukraine view the war as an imperial attempt to seize territory. The West denies its intention to destroy Russia, which in turn denies its intention to invade any NATO member states.

After the United States allowed Ukraine to use some American weapons to attack Russian territory, the Kremlin made it clear that it viewed this as a serious escalation of the conflict.

Putin ordered tactical nuclear weapons exercises, proposed placing conventional missiles within striking distance of the United States and its allies, and negotiated a defense treaty with North Korea.

Washington still prohibits Kyiv from attacking recognized Russian territory using ATACMS, which have a range of up to 300 km, and other long-range American weapons.

You may be interested in: top New York news, stories of our immigrants and helpful tips about life in the Big Apple - read it all on ForumDaily New York

Putin said on June 20 that Russia could supply weapons to North Korea in response to Western countries transferring weapons to Ukraine.

Asked what Russia's response would be to the attack in Crimea, Peskov recalled Putin's June 6 words about a wider deployment of conventional weapons. “Of course, US participation in military operations that result in the death of Russian civilians cannot remain without consequences,” Peskov said. “Time will tell what exactly they will be.”

Read also on ForumDaily:

Russian women were given instructions on how to behave with husbands who return from the war in Ukraine 'perverted and aggressive'

How the United States sees the end of the war between Russia and Ukraine: review of an interview with Victoria Nuland

Ukrainian film '20 days in Mariupol' received an Oscar

Do you want more important and interesting news about life in the USA and immigration to America? — support us donate! Also subscribe to our page Facebook. Select the “Priority in display” option and read us first. Also, don't forget to subscribe to our РєР ° РЅР ° Р »РІ Telegram  and Instagram- there is a lot of interesting things there. And join thousands of readers ForumDaily New York — there you will find a lot of interesting and positive information about life in the metropolis.