US accuses Vladimir Putin of using Israel-Hamas war as distraction for Ukraine invasion
US government officials have suggested that Vladimir Putin is using the crisis in the Middle East as a smokescreen for Russia's invasion of Ukraine.
The United States has accused Vladimir Putin of using the Middle Eastern crisis as a smokescreen for Russia's invasion of Ukraine.
Secretary of State Antony Blinken has argued that the despot is "taking advantage" of the Hamas attacks on Israel - which have left 1,400 people dead and triggered the invasion of Gaza - to distract the rest of the globe from his own plans to conquer Ukraine.
Blinken told a Senate hearing on funding for security issues: "Putin is very much trying to take advantage of the Hamas attack on Israel in the hope that will distract us."
US defence secretary Lloyd Austin explained that the Israel-Hamas war is the opportunity Putin has been waiting for and implored the West to remain focused on Ukraine.
He said: "If we pull the rug out from under them now, Putin will only get stronger and he will be successful in doing what he wants to do in acquiring his neighbour's sovereign territory."
The Kremlin hosted both a political wing of Hamas and a delegation from Iran last week and Blinken says that Putin's manoeuvres show why the West needs to remain steadfast in its support for Kyiv.
He said: "We've seen very significant burden sharing (in Ukraine) that would almost certainly go away if we go away."
