US assures Russia over Patriots – Lavrov

The US has told Russia that it will not send American soldiers to operate Patriot air-defense systems in Ukraine, Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov told Russia’s Channel One on Wednesday. The Russian diplomats received these assurances from Washington through “embassy channels,” he added.

“We’ve asked the Americans through the channels that our embassy still has, whether their decision to hand over a Patriot battery [to Ukraine] means that American specialists would come along with it, since it is complicated to use,” Lavrov said. The Russian diplomats then received “extensive explanations,” in which the US officials assured them they had no such plans, according to the minister.