Antony Blinken. Reuters
Washington D.C./08.07.23/Turan: U.S. President Joe Biden on Friday announced a massive aid package for Ukraine worth $800m. The deal includes controversial cluster munitions, "a highly effective and reliable artillery capability to engage area targets that the United States has not previously provided to Ukraine," as Secretary of State Antony Blinken put it, TURAN's Washington correspondent reports.
The package also includes additional precision aerial munitions, munitions for multiple launch rocket systems, 155mm howitzers, 155mm and 105mm artillery ammunition, air defense munitions, anti-tank missiles and rockets, more armored Bradley and Stryker vehicles, and other equipment essential to strengthening Ukraine’s forces on the battlefield, according to Blinken.
In public and in private, the Biden administration official on Friday offered a full-throated defense of the decision to send cluster bombs to Ukraine. National security adviser Jake Sullivan and Pentagon official Colin Kahl addressed reporters separately, asserting that the U.S. should fulfill Kyiv's request despite concerns about the risk to civilians, because Ukraine does not have enough artillery, white U.S. is dipping into its reserve of cluster munitions. Besides, they reminded, Russia has already been using these weapons.
Ktiv has already sent assurances that it would use the U.S.-provided weapons, supposedly with a dud rate of 2.5 percent or less, in ways that minimize harm to civilians, according to the White House.
Cluster munitions are banned by 123 countries through a 2008 treaty. Russia, Ukraine and the U.S. are not party to that treaty.
Alex Raufoglu
Politics
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On November 26, a group of reserve officers from the Nakhchivan special forces held a protest near the Azerbaijani presidential administration. The protesters participated in the 44-day war and were discharged after sustaining injuries. They claim that the payments they are entitled to have not been provided.
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On November 26, the Baku Court of Appeals heard a complaint regarding the extension of the detention of former diplomat Emin Ibrahimov. During the hearing, the investigator requested that the complaint be rejected, while Ibrahimov's lawyer, Aghil Laidj, pointed out the lack of grounds for keeping Ibrahimov in custody.
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Arrested economist Fazil Gasimov has reportedly faced pressure after protesting the interruption of a phone call with his family on November 16. "The phone call was cut off, and Fazil demanded that the connection be restored. Then, Jalal Alizadeh, a detention center officer, along with his colleagues, forcibly removed Fazil from the phone room in the medical unit of the facility, tearing his jacket and dragging him across the floor before throwing him into a cell.
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Polish President Andrzej Duda, who is on an official visit to Yerevan, stated the need for peace and stability in the Caucasus. During a joint press conference with Armenian President Vahagn Khachatryan, he noted that Poland is ready to support the peaceful settlement of the Armenian-Azerbaijani conflict. Speaking about the current unstable situation in the region, he noted Russia's aggression against Ukraine, which also affects the Caucasus.
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