U.S. Says 'Able To Keep Focused' On Ukraine Despite Middle East Turmoil

Washington D.C./10.11.23/Turan:  The United States on Thursday rejected the notion that the Israel-Hamas war has been a distraction from Ukraine.

"Absolutely not! We continue to be able to keep focused on the varying challenges that exist around the planet," State Department's principal deputy spokesperson Vedant Patel told a daily briefing when responding to TURAN's questions.

"That of course also includes Russia’s ongoing assault on Ukraine," he added.

Patel's comments came as Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said early this week that the violence engulfing Israel and Gaza risked distracting international attention from the war in his own country.

"There is a risk that international attention will turn away from Ukraine, and that will have consequences", Zelensky was quoted as saying in an interview with the a French broadcaster.

The State Department disagrees: "It was just a number of weeks ago... where we announced yet another tranche of security assistance for our Ukrainian partners, and this is something that we’ll continue to be focused on," Patel explained.

In President Biden’s recent Oval Office address, he talked about the importance of "not just ensuring that Israel has what it needs to defend its security, but also that our Ukrainian partners continue the support that they have been getting so that they can continue to defend themselves against the infringement on their territorial integrity and sovereignty," Patel reminded.

Alex Raufoglu