Biden cracks door to lethal aid to Ukraine

Tom Vanden Brook | USA TODAY

WASHINGTON — The debate over whether to provide lethal defensive aid, such as anti-tank missiles, to Ukraine is "worth having," Vice President Biden said Wednesday.

Last week, the Pentagon scrambled to send anti-tank missiles to Iraqi security forces. The portable weapons can pierce armor on vehicles and could presumably have a similar use in Ukraine.

Biden accused Russia, led by Vladimir Putin, of flouting international rules including "brutal" aggression in Ukraine.

He called for strengthening NATO and energy independence for Europe, which relies heavily on Russia for natural gas.

Biden's remarks in a speech at the Brookings Institution follow more than a year of heightened U.S.-Russian tensions over the seizure of Ukrainian territory, including Crimea. Russian-supplied separatists — backed by Russian artillery strikes at times — have destabilized eastern Ukraine.

Russia has mounted a "hyper-aggressive" state-sponsored propaganda program, Biden said. But it had not yet shaken European unity.

The Pentagon has sought to reassure Baltic-state countries by holding joint training exercises and sending advance warplanes to the region.

American support to Ukraine, a non-NATO ally, has been limited to training its national guard and "non-lethal" aid, such as Humvees. There have been hints that sending lethal weapons could be possible. Most notably Defense Secretary Ashton Carter said at his confirmation hearing in February that he would consider such a move.

The Pentagon has sent about $200 million in equipment and training for Ukraine's security forces, including Humvees, counter-radar systems, night-vision devices, radios, body armor, robots to dismantle bombs and medical supplies, according to Eileen Lainez, a Defense Department spokeswoman. There are also about 300 soldiers from the 173rd Airborne Brigade training members of the Ukraine National Guard.

Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, supports a more robust package of military aid.

Putin's incursion into Ukraine was more a matter of opportunism than strategy, Biden said. But he can be persuaded to act responsibly, Biden said, because "at his core he's practical."

Brookings' vice president, Martin Indyk, called Biden's speech "admirably tough."