By Faten Omar

KUWAIT: The US Embassy held a press conference on Thursday, marking one year of the unjustified Russian invasion of Ukraine on Feb 24, 2022, to emphasize US' support for Ukraine's sovereignty and call for the immediate withdrawal of Russian troops from Ukraine. Chargé d'Affaires James Holtsnider said there were many impacts of Russian's war on Ukrainian people, economy and food security.

"This has been a choice that Russia's president Vladimir Putin has made; he can choose to end it any time and withdraw from the country. We are always open to diplomacy, but unfortunately, Putin is not interested at this point," he said. "In the last few days, we gathered at the Ukraine Defense Contact Group, and more than 50 countries came together to support Ukraine and its people, providing $30 billion in assistance and committed to supporting and defending the people of Ukraine," he added.

"With the commencement of attacks on February 24, 2022, a large number of other countries began applying sanctions with the aim of devastating the Russian economy. I think international sanctions are working. We aim to make it clear to Russia that this kind of behavior is not tolerated; at the same time, we want to protect Ukraine. There will also be talk about sanctions on energy and others," Holtsnider said. "Sanctions are complicated; it takes a while to be announced and takes longer to be implemented, but they have an impact over time. Many people were connected to Russia's economy before the invasion, but you can see the impact of the sanctions."

Holtsnider revealed there is cooperation with a wide variety of international partners over Ukraine over the past year. "This week will also witness conversations about Ukraine, and there will be a focus on the priority of ensuring international unity against the unjustified Russian invasion. The only countries supporting Russia are the ones causing problems in the world. We have seen Iran cooperating with Russia and exporting weapons to Russia, which is the best example," he noted.

Holtsnider praised the role of Kuwait. "I would like to thank Kuwait for the position it is taking at the UN and other forums. The Kuwaiti government's position on the Russian invasion has been obvious in its condemnation of Moscow and its support for Ukraine. Kuwait also provided some humanitarian assistance to the Ukrainian people, which is not a surprise. Kuwait is known for its humanitarian support around the world. I think a lot of Kuwaitis see what is happening in Ukraine and are very sympathetic and understand the experience since they were in a similar situation," he explained.

Holtsnider affirmed Kuwait is a leader in diplomatic and humanitarian activity around the world, as well as a leading diplomatic partner, noting that meeting Kuwaiti Minister of Foreign Affairs Sheikh Salem Al-Abdullah Al-Jaber Al-Sabah was a chance to discuss troubling developments like Iranian weapon exports to Russia.

On US intervention, he indicated the Ukrainian people are fighting for their freedom. "I think we were very clear that we will continue to supply them with resources to be able to defend themselves. We do not have American troops in Ukraine - this is a Ukrainian fight to defend themselves and their homeland," he said.