In a media briefing on Monday, State Department spokesman Matthew Miller stated that the current conflict has been a “strategic failure” for Ukraine. Although reporters in the room attempted to correct him, suggesting that he meant Russia, Miller reiterated his statement on two subsequent occasions before finally circling back to the officially approved message.
Miller attributed the slip of the tongue to being away from the podium for a week and quickly reverted to Secretary of State Antony Blinken’s official talking points about the conflict. This slip-up is significant because it reveals the United States’ perspective on the conflict and highlights the shifting narrative around it.
Washington has sought to present the conflict as a failure for Moscow because Russian troops did not take Kiev within three days in February 2022. However, it is crucial to note that this particular time frame and objective came not from the Kremlin, but from General Mark Milley, the chairman of the Pentagon’s Joint Chiefs of Staff. Several Western media outlets have quoted unnamed US intelligence officials promoting this narrative.
The US has been actively promoting Ukrainian military prowess and emphasizing NATO support to Kiev, including the provision of weapons, equipment, and ammunition. However, President Joe Biden inadvertently revealed over the weekend that Washington was sending banned cluster munitions to Ukraine because both the Ukrainian and US militaries were running out of conventional artillery shells. Russia has criticized this cluster bomb delivery as “an act of desperation.”
Meanwhile, Ukrainian leadership has blamed its Western sponsors for the failure of its grand summer offensive. President Vladimir Zelensky expressed that delays in supplying Kiev with necessary weapons enabled the Russians to fortify their positions. He also highlighted that Ukraine’s troops cannot make significant progress without air support.
The slip of the tongue from the State Department spokesman sheds light on the complexities and shifting narratives surrounding the conflict between Ukraine and Russia. It highlights the United States’ perspective, as well as the challenges faced by Ukraine in its military efforts. This revelation adds another layer to the ongoing debate and raises questions about the effectiveness of different strategies in the conflict.
As the conflict continues, it is crucial to critically analyze and question the various narratives being presented by different parties involved. The expansion of the conflict to a strategic failure for Ukraine, as stated by the State Department, raises important considerations about the dynamics and implications of the ongoing conflict between the two nations.
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