U.S. to expand military cooperation with Ukraine, freeze military projects with Russia

[Hindustani78]

03.12.2016
http://en.interfax.com.ua/news/general/388257.html

The U.S. House of Representatives has approved the issue of $3.42 billion to the Pentagon in the coming financial year within the initiative to support security in Europe, according to the Deutsche Welle edition, with reference to the document posted on the website of the U.S. Congress.

According to the publication, the United States plans to pass to the preferential support of partners and allies in Europe to contain the Russian Federation.

According to the document, it is also planned to limit military cooperation between the United States and Russia. With a few exceptions, funds from the U.S. defense budget cannot be spent on any bilateral military projects until Russia stops the occupation of the Ukrainian territory and aggressive actions that threaten the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Ukraine and NATO members, the report reads.

The second condition for the resumption of cooperation is the fulfillment of the Minsk agreements by Moscow. It is separately stated that the United States does not contest the status of Russian military bases in Crimea, located in the territory of Ukraine on the basis of the 1997 agreement.

 

[Hindustani78]

http://uatoday.tv/politics/u-s-supp...ainst-russian-jamming-and-hacking-851808.html

Ukrainian servicemen are disappointed with U.S. non-lethal military assistance


Millions of dollars' worth of U.S.-supplied drones that Kyiv had hoped would help in its war against Russian-backed separatists have proven ineffective against jamming and hacking, Ukrainian officials told Reuters.

The 72 Raven RQ-11B Analog mini-drones were so disappointing following their arrival this summer that Natan Khazin, an advisor to Ukraine's military with deep knowledge of the country's drone program, said if it were up to him, he would return them.

The hand-launched Ravens were one of the recent highlights of U.S. security assistance to Ukraine, aiming to give the country's military portable, light-weight, unarmed surveillance drones.

But they appear to have fallen short in a battle against the separatists, who benefit from far more sophisticated military technology than insurgencies the West has contended with in Afghanistan, Iraq or Syria.

The Air Force command of Ukraine's armed forces acknowledged to Reuters that the Ravens supplied by the United States had a fundamental drawback: Russia and the separatist forces it supports can intercept and jam their video feeds and data.

U.S. officials, speaking on condition of anonymity, acknowledged that Russia's electronic warfare capabilities were far more sophisticated than thought when the conflict started.


There were mixed accounts on how much the Ravens were being used in Ukraine.

The Air Force command of Ukraine's armed forces said they were being used in the "Anti-Terrorist Operation" zone, including in combat situations.

One Ukrainian official, however, speaking to Reuters on condition of anonymity, said that although drones were being used in the zone, they were not employed on the front lines.

Khazin said they were largely in storage and called them a vulnerability, allowing the enemy to see Ukrainian military positions and, when it wanted, easily take them down. They had short battery life and were unable to reliably fulfill the key mission of gaining intelligence on artillery positions, he said.

 

[Desertfalcon]

U.S. to expand military cooperation with Ukraine, freeze military projects with Russia...

...Umm, for exactly 29 more days, that is.

 

[Hindustani78]

http://en.interfax.com.ua/news/economic/392944.html
U.S. President Barack Obama has signed the U.S. budget for the needs of national defense for 2017, increasing aid to the Ukraine security sector to $350 million.

"U.S. President Barack Obama has signed into law the National Defense Authorizations Act 2017 authorizing up to $350 million to be made available for security assistance to Ukraine, including lethal defensive assistance for the fiscal year of 2017. It is a $50 million increase from $300 million authorized in NDAA 2016," reads a report on the Facebook page of the Embassy of Ukraine in the United States.

The document foresees fiscal assistance to Ukraine in the field of security, including lethal defense weapons. The list of types of assistance was extended by inclusion of funds and technical support for the development of an integrated system for monitoring the state border of Ukraine, as well as assistance in training staff officers and the command authorities of the Armed Forces of Ukraine.

As reported, the bill on U.S. defense policy signed by the president provides for the restriction of military cooperation with Russia. The act for 2017 foresees $611 billion budget for the defense sector. Of these, $3.4 billion will be used for "containment of Russia."