US investing in new weapons capabilities amid Russia's invasion into Ukraine: Pentagon press secretary Kirby

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Kirby: Putin did not adequately plan for Ukrainian resistance

Pentagon Press Secretary John Kirby on Russia’s stalled advancement into Kyiv, Ukraine

As Russian President Vladimir Putin seeks to occupy Kyiv, Ukraine, Pentagon Press Secretary John Kirby told "America's Newsroom" on Tuesday that Russian forces were not adequately prepared for resistance. He added that the United States is bolstering their national defense strategy in the wake of Russia's advancement into Ukraine.

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JOHN KIRBY: If you look at the budget that the president submitted last year you can see that we are actually investing in new technology and new weapons capabilities and new operational concepts. The Pentagon itself is putting finishing touches on our national defense strategy that focuses very chiefly on the challenge raised by China as well as the challenge we see from other major nation-states like Russia, North Korea, Iran. There is a lot of effort to invest in capabilities and concepts to get us on a firmer footing to deal with the more modern nation-state-like threats and we’re doing it now.

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We don’t have perfect visibility into Mr. Putin’s military planning but clearly, he wants to make a move on Kyiv. He’s actually approaching on three lines of major access in Ukraine. He has divided his forces. Coming up from the south, coming in from the northeast, and down towards the north towards Kyiv. Kyiv seems to be the main effort in his mind. What we know… is that Mr. Putin did not adequately plan for Ukrainian resistance to be this stiff, this determined, this well-armed, and this capable. 

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