The United States is concerned about Ukraine's strikes on Russian nuclear radar stations. Washington told Kiev that attacks on Russian early warning systems can lead to destabilization of the situation. This is reported by the Washington Post with reference to an informed source in the US administration.
Details
According to the newspaper, the United States fears that the recent strikes of Ukrainian drones on Russian nuclear early warning systems could "dangerously upset Moscow."
"The United States is concerned about Ukraine's recent strikes on Russian missile attack early warning targets," the US official said.
Washington has expressed its concern to Kiev over two attempts to attack radar stations over the past week. At least one strike in Armavir, in the south-east of the Krasnodar Territory, as the newspaper notes, caused some damage.
"These facilities were not involved in supporting Russia's war against Ukraine. But they are sensitive targets because Russia may consider its strategic deterrence potential a target that could undermine Russia's ability to maintain a nuclear deterrent against the United States," the U.S. official said.
However, a Ukrainian official familiar with the matter told The Washington Post that Russia used radar platforms to monitor the actions of the Ukrainian military, in particular Kiev's use of aerial weapons such as drones and missiles.
The Ukrainian official pointed out that the purpose of the strikes was to reduce Russia's ability to track the actions of the Ukrainian military in southern Ukraine.
Українські розвідники знищили РЛС росіян вартістю 5 мільйонів доларів27.04.24, 09:14
U.S. officials said they sympathized with Ukraine's "dire situation" as administration officials actively discussed whether restrictions on the use of U.S. - provided weapons for strikes inside Russia should be lifted. But if Russia's early warning tools are "blinded" by Ukrainian attacks, at least in part, it could damage strategic stability between Washington and Moscow, the U.S. official said.
"Russia may think that its ability to detect early nuclear activity against it has decreased, and then this may become a problem," the official said. "It should be obvious to everyone that the United States has no intention of using nuclear weapons against Russia. But there is certainly concern about how Russia can accept that its deterrence potential will be directed at it and early warning systems will be attacked.