Chinanews.com, January 29th. As the escalation of the situation in Russia and Ukraine is approaching for a year, the United States, Germany and other Western countries have successively stated that they will send main battle tanks to Ukraine, which has aroused concerns about the escalation of the Ukrainian crisis.
In recent days, North Korea has spoken out twice, condemning the United States for forcing the situation to escalate.
North Korea Says Twice: "The U.S. Is the Culprit"
The first utterance was on January 27.
According to the Korean Central News Agency, Kim Yo Jong, vice-minister of the Central Committee of the Workers' Party of Korea, made a statement, expressing strong condemnation and concern over the large amount of military equipment that the United States put into Ukraine, saying its actions had "crossed the red line."
Data map: Jin Yuzheng.
Kim Yo Jong said that the United States and Western countries have completely ignored Russia's security concerns and provided Ukraine with astronomical amounts of military equipment, seriously undermining world peace and regional security.
"Behind this is the sinister intention of the United States to further expand the proxy war to destroy Russia in order to achieve its hegemony."
"The United States is the chief culprit for provoking troubles, posing a serious threat to Russia's strategic security, and forcing the regional situation into a dire situation like today."
"The Ukrainian battlefield is definitely not the Middle East desert where the US main battle tanks were rampant 20 years ago."
During the conversation, Kim and Zheng used strong words to condemn the actions of the United States and the West on the Ukraine issue.
The second utterance was on January 29.
Kwon Jong-keun, head of the U.S. Affairs Bureau of North Korea’s Foreign Ministry, said in a statement, “If the U.S. had not violated Russia’s legitimate security interests and gradually promoted NATO’s eastward expansion, the situation in Ukraine like today would not have occurred.”
He pointed out that the United States completely ignored the legitimate concerns and accusations of the international community and insisted on putting offensive weapons and equipment such as main battle tanks into Ukraine.
Quan Zhenggen further criticized that the United States once again made a big fuss about the baseless "North Korea-Russia arms trade theory", trying to justify its supply of weapons to Ukraine.
It is even more serious to smear the image of North Korea with false claims, which will never be tolerated.
In the end, he emphasized that the United States should be soberly aware that if it continues to weave lies, spread rumors and slander, it will face very serious consequences.
"Biden is reluctant to use the key"
In fact, the United States responded immediately after Kim and Jong spoke.
The spokesperson of the White House National Security Council stated on the 27th that the United States will continue to provide Ukraine with the weapons it needs to "resist Russia's brutal war against Ukraine."
Data map: The military aid provided by the United States to Ukraine.
Earlier, US President Biden announced that he would provide Ukraine with 31 "M1 Abrams" main battle tanks.
According to the Associated Press, the "Abrams" tank weighs about 70 tons, is equipped with a 120 mm caliber smoothbore gun, is driven by a 1,500 horsepower gas turbine engine, and has a maximum speed of 68 kilometers per hour. Driving on the ground, the battlefield situation awareness is strong, and it is also suitable for urban street fighting.
Why did the U.S. change the argument it insisted on in the past few months, that is, "it is difficult for the Ukrainian army to meet the operation and maintenance requirements of the U.S.-made M1 main battle tank", and instead announce the supply of main battle tanks?
Biden pointed out that as spring approaches, the Ukrainian army is preparing to launch more counterattacks, which requires them to counter the evolving tactics and strategies of the Russian army in a short period of time.
Therefore, the Ukrainian army urgently needs to improve its maneuverability and its ability to stop the Russian army for a long time.
And this is why the United States provides armored combat vehicles and M1 tanks to Ukraine.
After the United States and Germany recently released aid to Ukraine's main battle tanks, Ukrainian diplomats announced that they had "obtained" 321 heavy tanks from the West;
Russian President’s Press Secretary Peskov stated at a daily press conference on the 27th that “the key to the Kyiv regime is mainly in the hands of Washington,” but Biden is unwilling to use this key. the path of arms".
On the 26th local time, the spokesperson of the United Nations Secretary-General Dujarric stated at a press conference that the United Nations advocates the establishment of "justice and peace" in Ukraine in accordance with international law and the "United Nations Charter", but what is happening in front of us runs counter to it.