Sullivan Noted That, While Providing the Necessary Resources to Support and Defend Ukraine ... - Latest Tweet by The

As Russian forces shift their attention to the contested Donbas region in eastern Ukraine, the U.Southward. is focused on helping Ukrainians defend against that advance, just as they did in the majuscule of Kyiv, White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan told "Face the Nation" moderator Margaret Brennan on Sunday.

"Our job, Margaret, as I said earlier, is to aid ensure that the Ukrainians are in a position to resist that advance and ultimately to be in the strongest possible position, both on the battlefield and at the negotiating table," he said, adding that the U.S. and its allies would continue to deliver weapons and other military assistance to Ukraine.

Despite the growing death price and widespread devastation in Ukraine, Sullivan expressed confidence that the state could win more battles with the assist of Western nations.

Transcript: National security adviser Jake Sullivan on "Face the Nation"

"Start, allow'due south pause there for a moment, considering it is a remarkable thing that the Ukrainians won the battle of Kyiv," he said. "Russia lost the battle of Kyiv. Kyiv still stands. The capital letter metropolis of Ukraine was subject to an attack every bit its invading neighbor tried to conquer Kiev, and Russia failed.

"And they failed importantly because of the bravery and skill of the Ukrainian military. Just they likewise failed considering the Usa and our partners put in the hands of those military machine advanced weapons that help beat back the Russians," Sullivan said.

Asked almost Russian President Vladimir Putin'due south reported appointment of a full general who oversaw a series of brutal attacks in Syria as the new fundamental state of war commander for Ukraine, Sullivan said the movement is an "indication" that Ukraine could encounter more than atrocities in the days to come.

"It'due south actually just consistent with the mode Russian federation has conducted this war from the beginning," Sullivan said. "We've seen scorched-world warfare already, nosotros've seen atrocities and war crimes, and mass killings and horrifying and shocking images from towns like Bucha and the rocket assail at Kramatorsk."

His assessment comes days after a missile strike on a packed train station in the eastern Ukrainian town of Kramatorsk killed dozens of civilians, including several children, equally well as the recent discovery of dozens of bodies in the Kyiv suburb of Bucha and elsewhere following the withdrawal of Russian troops.

Sullivan said information technology's the responsibility of the U.Southward. and the international customs to "flow weapons and military assist to Ukraine" so its forces have the tools to fight back effectively.

Russian federation has denied beingness responsible for the Kramatorsk strike and has falsely claimed the grisly scenes on the streets of Bucha were staged.

Ukrainian PresidentVolodymyr Zelenskyy has urged a tough global response to Russia's brutal invasion of his country, proverb Friday night that the railroad train station attack amounted to another state of war crime for an international tribune to consider. He has also accused Russian federation of committing genocide in Ukraine with the goal of "emptying of the whole nation and the people, setting up camps and abducting numerous children.

Zelenskyy told CBS' "lx Minutes" in an interview ready to air Dominicus that the Ukrainian security service has intercepted communications from Russian soldiers discussing what he described every bit war crimes.

"At that place are [Russian] soldiers talking with their parents about what they stole and who they abducted," he said. "There are recordings of [Russian] prisoners of war who admitted to killing people. There are pilots in prison who had maps with noncombatant targets to bomb."

Amongst calls for the U.Due south. to practise more than, Sullivan defended the Biden administration's arroyo and cited the "unprecedented scope, scale and speed" of the assistance provided to Ukraine and then far. He said he besides expects the existing sanctions against Russian federation to play a part.

"They will have an effect," he said. "They will lead to a circumstance in which Russia has less capacity, less resources to be able to prosecute this state of war. So the United States is stepping up and is discharging its obligations on behalf of the Ukrainian people, on behalf of the principles of freedom and liberty and commonwealth and human rights. And nosotros will continue to do so."