UPDATE - US Approves Transfer Of Weapons From Ally Countries To Ukraine - Senator

WASHINGTON (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 20th January, 2022) The Biden administration has approved requests from certain ally countries to transfer American-made lethal weapons to Ukraine amid rising tensions with Russia, Sen. Jim Risch said on Wednesday.

Earlier in the day, Politico reported that Latvia, Estonia, and Lithuania asked the United States for approval to send their US-made weapons such as anti-armor and ground-to-air missiles to Ukraine.

"There's a couple other things we have urged the administration to do, they are taking action in that regard, I think delinquently, but they are," Risch, the top Republican on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, said during a press conference. "We have additional defensive measures that are weaponry that is headed for the Ukraine as we speak. In addition to that, a couple of our allies have asked for a relief from their licenses so that they can provide material. I understand that that's been done.

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US export license regulations require the Baltic countries to first seek approval from the State Department before transferring the weapons to Ukraine.

The three Baltic nations are members of NATO and have been in support of bolstering the alliance's presence in their countries.

The State Department declined to comment on the matter, and the White House did not respond to a request for comment, the Politico report said.

Western countries and Kiev have recently expressed concerns about the alleged "aggressive actions" of Russia near the border with Ukraine. Kiev accuses Moscow of military build-up and preparations for an invasion of the neighboring country. However, Russia denies the allegations and reiterates that it has no intention of attacking any country. Moreover, Moscow views the accusations as a pretext for deploying more NATO military equipment close to Russian borders.