INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
The United States balancing act in providing substantial military aid to Kyiv without provoking nuclear-armed Moscow into a dangerous
reaction has grown far more difficult as allegations mount of abuses and atrocities by Russian troops.Since the Russian invasion on February
24, the United States has provided Ukraine with a flood of light arms, like the shoulder-fired Javelin anti-tank missiles that have become a
symbol of Ukrainian resistance.But it has also refused to provide heavy weaponry like combat aircraft which could be seen as escalating the
potential "World War Three."American officials justifying the limited range of weapons point out that the Ukrainians are not trained to use
many United States technologies.Instead they have urged former Soviet-bloc countries to send more familiar Russian-made weaponry to
Ukraine.But as haunting reports emerge of alleged war crimes by a frustrated Russian army, the Pentagon has come under growing pressure from
both Republican and Democratic lawmakers to do more to help Kyiv repel the invaders."It seems to me that often our strategy seems to be
said Senator Richard Blumenthal, an influential Democrat, during a hearing with top Pentagon officials.And Republican senator Kevin Cramer,
questioning why the Pentagon failed to back a Polish proposal to provide MiG-29 combat jets to Kiev, asked, "Do you have any evidence
Vladimir Putin has ever worried that his massacre of women and children civilians would be escalatory?"Outside a NATO-enforced closure of
Ukrainian airspace, raising the risk of direct confrontation with Russian planes, the Pentagon's options are limited.Heavy United States
weaponry is not compatible with that used by the Ukrainian army, and training Ukrainian troops in their use would take them off the
battlefield for weeks just as Moscow is planning a major assault in the southeastern Donbas region.United States Abrams tanks, for example,
have turbo engines that consume huge amounts of fuel, requiring enormous logistics support, and their laser-guided targeting systems require
and an entire logistical chain would be needed to maintain the aircraft.In response to the criticism, the White House has published an
exhaustive list of the military material furnished so far to Ukraine.It includes: 1,400 Stinger anti-aircraft systems, 5,000 Javelin
anti-tank missiles, 7,000 anti-tank weapons of other models, several hundred Switchblade drones, 7,000 assault rifles, 50 million rounds of
various ammunition, 45,000 sets of bullet-proof vests and helmets, laser-guided rockets, Puma drones, anti-artillery and anti-drone radars,
criticism, saying, "We just fundamentally bristle at the notion that we're not doing enough."Biden has released $2.4 billion in military aid
to Kiev, "which is almost as much as Ukraine's defense budget," the spokesman said.Pointing out that the United States had also increased
its military manpower in Europe from 80,000 to 100,000 and had sent a Patriot air defense battery to Slovakia to compensate for its having
sent a Russian-made S-300 system to Kyiv, Kirby described the effort as "unprecedented.""No other country can do that," in terms of
logistics and supplies, he said."At the same time," he added, "we are mindful that Russia is a nuclear power."
