Xinhua News Agency
September 26, 2014
U.S. advisers to assist Ukraine with army modernization: ambassador
KIEV: A group of American advisers will come to Ukraine in the near future to assist the country with the modernization of its army, the United States Ambassador to Ukraine Geoffrey Pyatt said in an interview to a local newspaper published Thursday.
“We believe that Ukraine needs to be able to defend itself, and we will support that,” Pyatt was quoted as saying in the interview to the “Day” newspaper.
The U.S. has increased its security sector assistance to Kiev by 15 times to 116 million dollars during the crisis in Ukraine’s eastern regions, Pyatt said, who explained that extra assistance was also offered to add new programs, which would “help the Ukrainian forces defend themselves.”
The assistance includes programs to provide Ukraine with counter-mortar radar systems, as well as military advices to the security establishment and technical support on combat medicine. There is an initiative aimed at helping the Ukrainian forces deal more effectively with their injured personnel.
While stressing there is no military solution to conflict in eastern Ukraine, Pyatt said that the U.S. is going to continue its support for the peace plan proposed by President Petro Poroshenko and desire of the Ukrainian people to “define their own future.”
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