U.S. Pentagon: If Ukraine Carries Out Strike On Crimea, U.S. Would Side With Ukraine

Pentagon Says If Ukraine Carries Out Strike On Crimea US Would Be With Ukraine

European Command News | EUCOM

 Pentagon's spokeswoman Sabrina Singh just said if Ukraine decides to carry out a military operation in Crimea, the United States would "be with Ukraine for as long as it takes".

"This department has said that we will be with Ukraine for as long as it takes. That includes an operation in Crimea. That is a sovereign part of their country and they have every right to take that back".

Note: This does not necessarily mean that the United States will set soldiers down on the ground in Crimea to aid Ukraine in the fighting, but it is one of the strongest messages than have been put out thus far in regards to US support for the country. 

A NYT report claimed that "several anonymous US officials" spoke to the paper and told them that Washington is warming up to the idea of aiding Ukraine in strikes on Crimea, Ukrainian territory that was annexed by Russia.

Former Russian President Dmitry Medvedev: Defeat Of A Nuclear Power In Conventional War May Trigger Nuclear War - MOSCOW - 

While speaking of Russia's war in Ukraine, Former Russian President Dmitry Medvedev said that the "defeat of a nuclear power in a conventional war may trigger a nuclear war".

In his response, Medvedev, who is a deputy chairman of Russia's security council added that "Nuclear powers have never lost major conflicts on which their fate depends". 

This, amidst a report that Washington is warming up to the idea of aiding Ukraine in strikes on Crimea, Ukrainian territory that was annexed by Russia.

When Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov was asked about the remarks by Medvedev and whether it means that Russia is escalating the crisis to another level, he said, "No, it absolutely does not mean that".

Then he added that the remarks by the former President were in line with Russia's nuclear doctrine, which states that a nuclear strike is acceptable in light of any "aggression against the Russian Federation with conventional weapons when the very existence of the state is threatened".