The Brooking Institution comes out in favor of arming Ukraine:
Recommendations
• The White House and Congress should commit serious funds to upgrade Ukraine’s defense capabilities, specifically providing $1 billion in military assistance this year, followed by an additional $1 billion each in the next two fiscal years;
• The U.S. government should alter its policy and begin providing lethal assistance to Ukraine’s military and;
• The U.S. government should approach other NATO countries about also providing military assistance to Ukraine.
The Soldiers' Mothers of St. Petersburg has asked Russia's human rights ombudsman to look into complaints by conscripts that they are being forced to sign transfers to Rostov, near the Ukrainian border, presumably then to be sent to fight in Ukraine, our Russian Service reports (in Russian).
Is Washington considering arming Ukraine?
The New York Times has reported top U.S. administration and military officials are reconsidering providing Ukraine with defensive weapons as the government in Kyiv struggles against pro-Russian separatists in eastern Ukraine.
The February 1 article said a growing number of U.S. officials, including Secretary of State John Kerry and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff General Martin Dempsey, are "open to new discussions about providing lethal aid."
So far the Obama administration has limited military aid to Ukraine to nonlethal items such as body armor, night-vision goggles, first aid kits, and engineering equipment.
An independent report by eight former senior U.S. officials that is due to be released on February 2 proposes sending some $3 billion in defensive weapons to Ukraine, including antiarmor missiles, reconnaissance drones, armored Humvee vehicles, and radars that can determine the location of enemy rocket and artillery fire.
The separatists have initiated an offensive in eastern Ukraine many feel because of heavy weapons Russia has supplied recently to the separatists.
This ends our live-blogging for February 1. Be sure to check back tomorrow for our continuing coverage.