The attack on Ukraine, now in its sixth day, met with universal condemnation from Western powers. Follow the special coverage of CNN.
Sanctions against Russia and aid to Ukraine have come from many directions. But putting troops on the soil of Ukraine, which is not a member of NATO, is a line the United States and other Western allies have not been willing to cross.
US Ambassador to the United Nations (UN), Linda Thomas-Greenfield, told Dana Bash on the State of the Union program CNNon Sunday (27), that the Biden administration “made it clear” the US will not “put its boots on the ground”.
“We are not going to put the American military in danger.”
But what other factors are keeping US troops out of Ukraine? Understand what is at stake:
Why won’t the US send troops to Ukraine?
While the US has condemned Russia’s actions at every opportunity, President Joe Biden has made it quite clear that US forces will not enter Ukraine or engage with Russia directly.
Because? As Biden told NBC News earlier this month, “It’s a world war when the Americans and Russia start shooting at each other.” In other words, US entry into the conflict has the potential to wage a global war.
Reserve Lieutenant General Mark Hertling, national security and military analyst at CNN, said what matters on Sunday: “The key to diplomacy is limiting the potential for war. While the current Russian illegal invasion war in Ukraine is tragic, chaotic and devastating, it remains a regional conflict.”
“If NATO or the US were to send troops to Ukraine to help them fight the Russians, the dynamic would shift to a multinational conflict with potential global implications due to the nuclear power status of both the US and Russia. So the US and NATO – and other nations around the world – are trying to influence Ukraine’s success and Russia’s defeat by providing other types of support,” explained Hertling.
What about US troops in Europe?
The US has deployed thousands of troops across Europe both before and during Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
Barbara Starr, from CNNreported on Sunday that more than 4,000 US Army personnel who have moved to Europe on a temporary basis will now have their service trip extended (likely for several weeks) as part of the US effort to reassure Eastern European allies during the current crisis.
But that force is not there to fight the Russians.
US forces “are not and will not be involved in a conflict with Russia in Ukraine,” Biden said Thursday at the White House.
Instead, US troops are tasked with defending “our NATO allies and reassuring our eastern allies. As I made clear, the United States will defend every inch of NATO territory with the full force of American power,” Biden added.
Is there any scenario where the US would directly involve Russia?
Ukraine borders NATO member countries – Poland, Slovakia, Hungary and Romania. If Russia threatened one of these countries, the US – along with France, Germany, the UK and the rest of NATO’s 30-member alliance – would be obliged by Article 5 of the North Atlantic Treaty to respond.
Article 5 guarantees that the resources of the entire alliance can be used to protect any member nation. The first and only time it was invoked was in the aftermath of the September 11, 2001 attacks on the US; as a result, NATO allies joined the invasion of Afghanistan.
Can US troops help create a no-fly zone in Ukraine?
The United States will not put American pilots in the air to create a no-fly zone in Ukraine, Ambassador Thomas-Greenfield explained on Sunday.
The Biden administration’s stance of keeping US forces out of Ukraine means that “we are not going to put US troops in the air, but we will work with the Ukrainians to give them the ability to defend themselves,” he added.
While some Ukrainian officials have called on NATO countries to “close the sky” over Ukraine, the creation of a no-fly zone would put the US in direct engagement with the Russian military, which the White House has made clear it is not interested in. in doing.
How else is the US helping Ukraine?
Secretary of State Antony Blinken said Saturday that he had authorized the provision of $350 million for new US military assistance to Ukraine.
“Today, as Ukraine struggles with courage and pride against Russia’s brutal and unwarranted attack, I authorized, in accordance with a request from the President, an unprecedented third Presidential Uprising of up to $350 million in immediate support of Ukraine’s defense.” , said in a statement.
Previous withdrawals were $60 million and $250 million, putting last year’s total at more than $1 billion, according to a government source.
In addition, Blinken announced Sunday that the US is sending around $54 million in humanitarian aid to Ukraine to help those affected by Russia’s invasion.
How has the US punished Russia?
In a word, with sanctions.
The US and Western countries have imposed several packages of sanctions on Russia, targeting its banking, aerospace and technology sectors. Sanctions include penalties in all sectors, including:
- Asset freezing for the biggest banks
- Debt and capital constraints on critical mining, transportation and logistics companies
- A large-scale effort to end access to critical technology for key Russian military and industrial sectors
On Friday, the US (along with the European Union, the UK and Canada) announced that it would directly impose sanctions on Russian President Vladimir Putin and Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov.
On Saturday, the US and the European Commission, along with France, Germany, Italy, the UK and Canada, announced that they would expel certain Russian banks from SWIFT, the high-security network linking thousands of financial institutions across Worldwide.
“Sanctions, blockades, economic influence, building alliances against Putin’s actions, while simultaneously providing Ukraine with weapons and other aid, can prevent further aggression and unintended global consequences,” Hertling said.
How is public opinion?
As we wrote about last week, Americans fear US intervention in the Russia-Ukraine conflict, according to polls taken in preparation for the Russian invasion.
- In an AP-NORC poll, only 26% of Americans believed the US should play an important role in the situation between Russia and Ukraine. About half, 52%, said they should play a minor role and another 20% said they should play no role at all.
- A third of Democrats (32%) and 22% of Republicans wanted the US to play an important role. Independents will likely say that the US should have no role in the conflict; 32% felt this role, compared to 22% among Republicans and 14% among Democrats.
What comes next?
Ambassador Thomas-Greenfield said Sunday that the US “has not taken anything off the table” when asked how to guide the Russian energy sector with sanctions, which so far has not happened.
“We’re climbing as the Russians climb, so there’s more to come,” Bash said.
US and European officials debated sanctions on the Russian Central Bank, an unprecedented step for an economy the size of Russia. Thomas-Greenfield did not give a precise timeframe for this, but said: “This is happening very, very quickly.”
The scale of central bank sanctions is still under discussion and could be even stronger than indicated, according to Phil Mattingly of CNN.
Source: CNN Brasil

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