Moscow is hitting American businesses in Ukraine, while White House is not reacting — NYT
Photo: US President Donald Trump (Getty Images)
Russia has begun systematic attacks on the facilities of major American corporations in Ukraine, while the administration of President Donald Trump in the US is currently largely not responding to these incidents, The New York Times reports.
According to the outlet, assets belonging to major companies such as Cargill, Coca-Cola, Boeing, Mondelez, Philip Morris, Flex Ltd., and Bunge have come under Russian strikes. Some of these attacks, including strikes on Cargill and Coca-Cola facilities, had not been previously disclosed.
One of the most recent incidents was a strike on the grain terminal of agribusiness giant Cargill in southern Ukraine. The facility was attacked by seven Russian drones within just three minutes.
In addition, strikes were recorded on a power station and a solar plant near a Coca-Cola facility outside Kyiv, which local authorities consider a deliberate attack on American business.
Company representatives are trying not to publicize these incidents due to concerns about negative reactions from investors and insurance markets. However, in private conversations, businesses express confidence that Russia is carrying out a deliberate campaign against US interests.
Lack of response from Washington
The administration of Donald Trump has so far not condemned any of the attacks reported by Kyiv. According to sources cited by the outlet, the White House’s response has been limited to "expressions of concern."
At the same time, Washington asked Ukraine to refrain from striking a Russian oil terminal in the Black Sea. This facility is used to export Kazakh oil with the involvement of American companies.
Democratic Senator Jeanne Shaheen called the White House’s position complete silence. In her view, representatives of American business in Ukraine have no doubts about the intentional nature of the Kremlin’s actions.
Purpose of Russian attacks
The head of the American Chamber of Commerce in Ukraine, Andrii Hunder, believes that Moscow aims to disrupt the flow of US investment. He noted that the aggressor’s main goal is to demonstrate that doing business in Ukraine is too risky due to constant threats.
The NYT writes that the escalation of strikes coincided with intensified economic cooperation between the countries in the energy sector. In particular, last year, Ukraine and the US signed an agreement providing preferential access for American investors to Ukraine’s energy sector.
From the evening of May 11 to the morning of May 12, the aggressor state attacked Ukraine with 216 Shahed-type kamikaze drones, as well as Gerbera, Italmas, and Parodiya decoy drones.
As of the morning, air defense forces had shot down or suppressed 192 enemy drones in the north, south, east, and center of the country. Hits from 25 drones were recorded at 10 locations.
