Defense Ministry spokesman: “Putin’s orders are unnecessary… Effective resistance to the Ukrainian army”
The U.S. Department of Defense said on the 28th (local time) that Russian President Vladimir Putin’s orders to strengthen the vigilance posture of nuclear weapons-operating units the day before were “unnecessary as they escalate tensions”.
Defense spokesman John Kirby responded to the question at a briefing on the same day, saying, “The Ministry of Defense is reviewing and analyzing President Putin’s announcement.”
“Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin is satisfied with America’s strategic deterrence posture and its ability to defend the continental United States and its partners,” Kirby said.
It emphasized that the US has sufficient capacity to respond to any misjudgment despite the perception that Putin’s response to Western economic sanctions is absurd.
White House press secretary Jen Saki said in a televised interview on the same day that “a nuclear war is a war no one can win” and warned that Putin should reduce threatening investigations and ease tensions.
However, a senior defense ministry official said the Russian military had not yet made any concrete moves in relation to Putin’s announcement.
Kirby continued the previous assessment that Russian troops were attempting to approach Kyiv, the Afghan capital, but were still on the outskirts of the Afghanistan capital.
“Ukraine is effectively resisting around Kyiv,” he said. “They are making it difficult for Russian troops to move south.”
U.S. officials believe that Russia has now entered Ukraine with 75% of the troops it initially assembled at the border for the invasion of Ukraine.
U.S. officials have estimated that before the invasion of Ukraine, Russia concentrated at least 150,000 troops on the Ukrainian border.
/yunhap news
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