Rubio Calls Claims US Stopped Missile Warnings to Ukraine "Outrageous"
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio on Tuesday, 20 October, called false reports that the United States stopped sharing ballistic-threat data with Ukraine, speaking to journalists during a visit to India, as cited by European Pravda.
"I saw someone from the Ukrainian government's circle say that people in Ukraine are dying because the US is denying them information. That is outrageous. That is unacceptable. It's simply not true," Rubio said.
He said the lack of warnings about Russian ballistic launches on Russia's attacks of 13 and 18 October was "an internal problem" rather than a deliberate step by the administration. Rubio suggested the problem may have been linked to Ukraine's ability to receive, sort and act on the information provided, but said the US is looking into it. As far as Washington understands, what happened on 13 and 18 October was a technical problem. The US continues to provide air-threat information "as always", he said, and it was not the result of any directive to stop warning of strikes.
Interceptors and the PURL program
Rubio also insisted that on US arms supplies to Ukraine under the PURL program "nothing has changed" and that intelligence sharing continues. He acknowledged that delays in interceptor deliveries to Ukraine may occur, because many American partners want them. Interceptors, he said, are perhaps the most in-demand defense product at the moment, and the US has its own needs. "Ukraine is not being denied anything on purpose," he said, describing it as a balance between US commitments to other partners and its own requirements, and adding that there was no deliberate political directive to harm Ukraine.
Background
On Tuesday, Zelensky spoke with Rubio about Starlink, ballistic-attack warnings and air defense help. On 18 October Zelensky said the United States had resumed providing critical intelligence for defense against Russian missile strikes, while Rubio insisted that earlier "software problems" on the Ukrainian side delayed the warning. On Monday Zelensky said the US Defense Department was delaying needed supplies and accused Washington of trying to pressure Kyiv into capitulating. We reported earlier that Ukraine again got no partner warning on Russian ballistic missiles.