White House puts Russian attack on Kyiv on par with drone strikes on Russian oil refineries
The US administration’s spokeswoman Caroline Levitt, reacting to Russia’s overnight attack on Ukraine, recalled Ukrainian strikes on oil refineries in Russia and said that "both sides" may not want to end the war.
Source: Levitt’s remarks at a briefing, as reported by European Pravda
Details: Levitt reported that she spoke with US President Donald Trump about the latest Russian attack, and "he was not happy about this news, but he was also not surprised".
Quote: "It is about two countries that have been at war for a very long time. Russia launched this attack on Kyiv. And likewise, Ukraine recently dealt a blow to Russia's oil refineries. They have taken out, as the matter of fact, 20% of Russia’s oil refineries capacity over the course of their attack throughout the month of August."
More details: Levitt also said that Trump "continues to watch this intently" and wants to end the war to stop the killing of people.
Quote: "But perhaps both sides of this war are not ready to end it themselves. The President wants it to end, but the leaders of these two countries must want it to end as well. And I think the president will make additional statements on this later."
Background:
- On the night of 27-28 August, Russian troops launched a large-scale attack on Ukraine, using 629 aerial assets. Nineteen people, including four children, have been killed and dozens of others sustained injuries in the large-scale Russian attack on Kyiv. Friday 29 August has been declared a day of mourning in Kyiv in memory of those who were killed.
- A number of European states condemned the Russian attack, and the European Union and the UK said they were summoning Russian diplomatic representatives.
- Trump’s special envoy Keith Kellogg was the first among senior US officials to comment on the second-biggest bombardment of Kyiv, stressing that these attacks "threaten the peace that the US President is pursuing".
- On Thursday evening, the US Embassy in Kyiv commented on the Russian attack, recalling Trump’s call on "both sides" to reach a decision to end the war.
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