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Kirby calls Putin’s “West v. Russia” claim about Ukraine’s Kursk incursion “horse-hockey”

White House official John Kirby dismisses as “horse-hockey” “a funny bit of Putin propaganda” that Ukrainian incursion into Kursk Oblast represents a war between the West and Russia. If Putin doesn’t like Ukraine’s defense, “then there’s an easy solution: He can just get the hell out of Ukraine and call it a day,” he says.
change us weapon restrictions ukraine after russia's attack kyiv hospital kirby says john white house press briefing 15 april 2024 screenshot youtube/whitehouse 15/04/2024
John Kirby at the White House Press Briefing on 15 April 2024. Screenshot: YouTube/WhiteHouse.
Kirby calls Putin’s “West v. Russia” claim about Ukraine’s Kursk incursion “horse-hockey”

During a press briefing on 12 August, White House National Security Communications Advisor John Kirby dismissed claims by Russian President Vladimir Putin and his defense minister that the Ukrainian incursion into Russia’s Kursk Oblast represents a war between the West and Russia. Kirby referred to this narrative as “a funny bit of Putin propaganda.”

Ukrainian troops started the incursion of Russia’s Kursk Oblast on 6 August, possibly in order to draw Russian troops away from other fronts and to use the control of the territory as leverage at negotiations with Russia in the future. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine Oleksandr Syrskyi confirmed the involvement of the Ukrainian forces in the Kursk operation on 12 August, with Syrskyi stating that Ukraine controls about 1,000 square kilometers of the Russian territory.

“[Putin’s] been clinging to it since the beginning of the war: that he had to go into Ukraine, NATO is surrounding him, and that NATO support and US support for Ukraine just proves it’s the West versus Russia; it’s NATO versus Russia; it’s the US versus Russia.  And it’s all a bunch of horse-hockey.  There’s nothing to it,” Kirby said.

He stated,

“This is Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine, pure and simple. Always has been since the beginning.”

Kirby emphasized that the only people at war in Ukraine are the Russians, “they’re the ones that invaded Ukraine. And Ukraine is defending itself against that aggression.”

He advised Putin,

“And if he doesn’t like it, if it’s making him a little uncomfortable, then there’s an easy solution: He can just get the hell out of Ukraine and call it a day.”

Addressing reports of North Korean missiles being used in recent Russian strikes on Ukraine, including in Kyiv, Kirby said he couldn’t confirm specific incidents. However, he acknowledged that Russia has been using North Korean ballistic missiles in recent weeks and months.

Kirby described Putin as “desperate for assistance and military capability” due to the impact of export controls and sanctions, which have “turned whatever economy he had before this war into pretty much a wartime economy.”

Kirby also mentioned that the US is in close contact with Ukrainian counterparts regarding their military operations but deferred to Ukraine to speak about their own activities. He stated,

“We’re continuing to speak to our Ukrainian counterparts about these operations. I’ll let them speak to their operations.”

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