WASHINGTON — Ukraine will soon have more lethal American-made weapons to help it fight Russian-backed separatists. US officials said Friday that the Trump administration approved a plan to provide lethal weapons to Ukraine, in a long-awaited move that deepens America's involvement in the military conflict and may further strain relations with Russia. President Barack Obama also considered sending lethal weapons to Ukraine, but left office without doing so. Sending lethal weapons to Ukraine also creates the troubling possibility that American arms could kill Russian soldiers, a situation that could thrust the two nuclear-armed nations closer to direct confrontation. The Trump administration has insisted those sanctions will stay in place until Moscow gives up the Crimean Peninsula.

Source: Philippine Star December 23, 2017 07:18 UTC