US will investigate whether Western military aid was used in Belgorod raid
John Kirby (Photo:REUTERS/Kevin Lamarque)
Washington will verify whether U.S.-supplied
equipment was indeed used during the incursion of the Freedom
of Russia Legion and the Russian Volunteer Corps (RVC) into Russia’s
Belgorod Oblast, White House National Security spokesman John Kirby said on May
24.
"We are looking into reports of possible involvement of U.S. equipment and vehicles," The Washington Post quotes Kirby.
Pentagon spokesperson, Gen. Patrick Ryder, also commented during a briefing that the U.S. Department of Defense does not approve of equipment transfers to militarized organizations not part of the Ukrainian Armed Forces. According to him, the Pentagon has not received any requests from the Ukrainian government regarding such a transfer.
On May 22, the Freedom of Russia Legion announced that, together with the RVC, they had “completely liberated” the settlement of Kozinka in Belgorod Oblast, and also entered the town of Grayvoron, commencing its assault.
Ukrainian officials said Kyiv is aware of these developments, with no direct involvement in what they described as an “internal Russian matter.”
Following the raid, media reports by Russian sources showed at least two heavily damaged U.S. Humvee armored vehicles.
Representatives of the Freedom of Russia Legion said the vehicles were seized from Russian troops, who previously captured them somewhere near Bakhmut, Donetsk Oblast.
"We successfully re-captured and returned this equipment," the legion stated.
The Freedom of Russia Legion is a unit within the Ukrainian Armed Forces, established in March 2022 to combat the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
The RVC was formed in August 2022, and is not formally affiliated with the Ukrainian military.
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