It has been a tough week for Pentagon Deputy Press Secretary Sabrina Singh, and yesterday’s performance did not get any better. She started her Nov. 21 briefing with: “I can confirm that Russia did launch an experimental intermediate range ballistic missile. This IRBM was based on Russia’s RS-26 Rubezh intercontinental ballistic missile model. In terms of notifications to the United States, the United States was pre-notified briefly before the launch through nuclear risk reduction channels.”
Then the spin began, regarding the unarguably clear message that Russian President Vladimir Putin had sent, with a successful test-firing of a new, advanced hypersonic missile that can reach all of Europe. Singh asserted: “Of course, we’re going to take seriously the rhetoric coming out of Russia. But our focus remains on arming Ukraine and supporting Ukraine what it needs the most on the battlefield. And as a reminder, as this reckless rhetoric continues, Putin can choose to end this war today.”
In response to a follow-up question, Singh deflected from reality into the “North Korea” narrative: “We haven’t seen any adjustments that we’ve observed in their nuclear posture, and we haven’t adjusted our nuclear posture in exchange....
“So, this was a new type of lethal capability that was employed on the battlefield. So that’s certainly a concern to us. And we’re going to—I don’t have an assessment of its impacts right now, but it’s something that of course we’re concerned by. But what’s been escalatory in this war is the fact that Russia decided to turn to a foreign country and bring those D.P.R.K. soldiers into the fight.”
