Buried in NY Times article: Biden-Harris officials discussed returning nukes to Ukraine

by WorldTribune Staff, November 25, 2024 Real World News

The following is buried deep in a Nov. 21 New York Times report headlined “Trump’s Vow to End the War Could Leave Ukraine With Few Options’:

Is the Biden-Harris administration considering returning nuclear weapons to Ukraine?

“So U.S. and European officials are discussing deterrence as a possible security guarantee for Ukraine, such as stockpiling a conventional arsenal sufficient to strike a punishing blow if Russia violates a cease-fire.

“Several officials even suggested that Mr. Biden could return nuclear weapons to Ukraine that were taken from it after the fall of the Soviet Union.”

Following the decisive victory of President-elect Donald Trump earlier this month, the Biden-Harris administration and their NATO allies began taking steps to escalate the war by pledging to rush weapons to Ukraine and give Kiyv permission to strike targets inside Russian territory with long-range weapons.

The Biden-Harris administration believes that Russian leader Vladimir Putin won’t significantly escalate the war until Trump returns to the Oval Office, the Times article cited officials as saying.

“But the escalation risk of allowing Ukraine to strike Russia with U.S.-supplied weaponry has diminished with the election of Mr. Trump,” the report says, adding, “Biden administration officials believe, calculating that Putin of Russia knows he has to wait only two months for the new administration.”

Kyle Anzalone of AntiWar.com noted: “That assessment is based on the belief that Trump and his incoming Director of National Intelligence, Tulsi Gabbard, will take a more favorable stance on Russia. However, Trump proved to be a Russia-hawk during his first administration by ramping up sanctions on Moscow, providing lethal arms to Ukraine, and expelling a large number of Russian diplomats from the U.S.”

In fact, Putin had said during the 2024 U.S. presidential election campaign that he preferred Democrat Kamala Harris to win the White House.

“Trump has imposed as many sanctions on Russia as any president has ever imposed before, and if Harris is doing well, perhaps she will refrain from such actions,” Putin explained.

Anzalone added: “Much of the American political class has cast Trump and Gabbard as agents of Russia. However, extensive investigations into Trump’s ties to the Kremlin have come up empty. Additionally, the Times reported last week that there was no evidence Gabbard was in any way an asset of Putin.”

Meanwhile, as NATO’s leader, the United States has pushed a series of escalatory steps.

“The latest provocation is the decision by Joe Biden’s administration authorizing Ukraine to use long-range U.S. Army Tactical Missile Systems (ATACMS) that are capable of striking at least 190 miles inside Russia. Moscow has responded by adopting a new nuclear doctrine warning that the use of such missiles by NATO’s Ukrainian proxy would mean that Moscow is officially at war with the U.S.-led alliance. Perhaps Russian President Vladimir Putin is bluffing, but the risk of a nuclear collision between NATO and Moscow now appears to be very high,” long-time foreign policy and national security analyst Ted Galen Carpenter wrote in a Nov. 25 analysis.

“To say that the Biden administration has no mandate to make such a crucial decision involving war and peace would be a monumental understatement.”

Carpenter added:

“One can hope, though,” that Trump “has fully understood what a disaster Washington’s love affair with Ukraine has become for both countries. Restoring cooperative bilateral relations with Russia is essential for global peace.

“Alarmingly, however, Trump might not get that opportunity, even if he wishes to back away from the beckoning abyss. The lame-duck Biden administration still holds power for nearly another two months, and, if administration leaders are so inclined, that is more than enough time to plunge the country into nuclear war. Biden’s conduct in recent weeks, especially authorizing Ukraine to attack Russia with U.S.-supplied, long-range missiles, is beyond reckless. Biden’s legacy is already bad, but it could become even worse.”


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