U.S. Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel in a phone conversation with his Ukrainian counterpart Valeriy Heletei, has conveyed the essence of his conversation with Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu, who said that the Russian aid convoy is not a military intervention.
“Secretary Hagel relayed Minister Shoigu’s recent remarks on the Russian aid convoy, and Minister Shoigu’s ‘guarantee’ that the aid convoy was not a military intervention,” reads a statement posted on the Web site of the U.S. Department of Defense with regard to the conversation between Hagel and Heletei on Aug. 20.
Hagel, in turn, said that he told Shoigu that Russia’s vehicles and forces along the border continued to escalate tensions and stressed that any discussions about potential ceasefire agreements must include Ukraine.
Heletei, in turn, reported increased violence in Ukraine’s east as a result of Russia’s ongoing supply of weapons and personnel into Ukraine, and spoke about recent attacks in which innocent civilians were killed and wounded.
“Secretary Hagel and Minister Heletei discussed the status of ongoing deliveries of United States military assistance to Ukraine. Minister Heletei thanked the secretary for the continued assistance of the United States,” reads the report.
