The US pledge of a massive new shipment of weapons comes as analysts warned that Russia was moving troops and equipment in the direction of southern port cities to prevent a Ukrainian retaliation.
The US pledge of a massive new shipment of weapons comes as analysts warned that Russia was moving troops and equipment in the direction of southern port cities to prevent a Ukrainian retaliation.
The Biden administration on Monday announced another $1 billion in new military aid for Ukraine, pledging what would be the largest-ever delivery of rockets, ammunition and other weapons directly from the Defense Department to Ukrainian forces.
The US pledge of a massive new shipment of weapons comes as analysts warned that Russia was moving troops and equipment in the direction of southern port cities to prevent a Ukrainian retaliation.
Support includes additional rockets for the High Mobility Artillery Rocket System, or HIMARS, as well as thousands of artillery rounds, mortar systems, spears and other ammunition and equipment. Military commanders and other US officials say HIMARS and artillery systems have been crucial in Ukraine’s ongoing battle to prevent Russia from taking more land.
US aid totals $9 billion
The latest announcement brings US security assistance totaling more than $9 billion to Ukraine by the Biden administration since the invasion of Russian troops in late February.
“At every stage of this conflict, we are focused on getting Ukrainians what they need based on evolving conditions on the battlefield,” said Colin Kahl, the Under Secretary of Defense for Policy, announcing the shipment of new weapons. Said while doing
To date, the largest single security aid package was announced on June 15 at $1 billion. But that aid included $350 million in the Presidential Drawdown Authority and $650 million under the Ukraine Security Assistance Initiative, which provides funding for training, equipment and other security. Needs that can be bought from other countries or companies.
Monday’s package allows the US to more quickly deliver weapons systems and other equipment as it removes them from Defense Department shelves.
pay attention to donbass
For the past four months of the war, Russia has focused on capturing the Donbass region of eastern Ukraine, where pro-Moscow separatists have controlled some areas as self-declared republics for eight years. The Russian military has made gradual progress in the region, launching missile and rocket attacks to curtail the movements of Ukrainian fighters elsewhere.
Kahl estimated that the Russian army sustained 80,000 casualties and injuries in the fighting, although he did not dissect the figure with his estimate of the forces killed.
He said Russian troops had managed to gain “incremental” ground in eastern Ukraine, though not in recent weeks. “But it has come at an extraordinary cost to the Russian military because of how well the Ukrainian military has performed and all the assistance the Ukrainian military has received. And I think now, the conditions in the East have essentially stabilized and attention Really heading south.”
The new funding is being paid through $40 billion in economic and security aid for Ukraine approved by Congress in May.
This is the 18th time the Pentagon has provided Ukraine with equipment from Defense Department stocks since August 2021.
NO NEW HIMARS
The package doesn’t include any new HIMARS, but does provide rockets for it, though officials didn’t say how many. The US has already provided 16 HIMARS to Ukraine.
“These are not the systems that we assess that you need hundreds of types of impacts,” Kahl said, responding to a question why the US wasn’t sending more powerful rocket systems. “These are precision-guided systems for very specific types of targets and the Ukrainians are using them as such.”
Kahl said the US and allies are still evaluating whether to supply the aircraft to Ukraine. It is “not inconceivable that down the road western aircraft could be part of the mix,” he said.
At the start of the war, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelinsky launched almost daily calls for warplanes, describing them as necessary to protect the skies of Ukraine. The US and some other NATO countries feared that they might be involved in a more direct involvement with Ukraine’s war against Russia, and did not provide Western aircraft.