Provision of US arms to Ukraine can mean more bloodshed: Russia

The Kremlin said on Thursday that the weapons would provoke “hotheads” among Ukrainian nationalists to seek to unleash new bloodshed in eastern Ukraine.

On Wednesday, the US State Department announced it had approved a license for US manufacturers to sell firearms and smaller weapons to Ukraine, including assault rifles, combat shotguns, silencers, military scopes, and flash suppressors.

Moscow has several times warned Washington against supplying Kiev with lethal weapons.

Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova also said that by selling Kiev the sniper rifles and other arms, Washington was encouraging “massive bloodshed” in eastern Ukraine and becoming an “accomplice to murder.”

The sale of new US weapons to Ukraine could complicate hopes for new peace talks and lead to further casualties in the war, which has claimed more than 10,300 lives already.