US announces $1.2bn in additional military aid for Ukraine
The new military assistance package for Ukraine includes air defense systems and conventional and counter drone munitions.
The United States has announced a new $1.2 billion military aid package for Ukraine, which will include air defense systems, conventional artillery and counter-drone munitions, satellite imagery services and funding for military training.
In the package announced Tuesday, Ukraine will also receive technology to enable the integration of Western air defense launchers, missiles and radars with Ukraine’s own air defense systems.
“The Russians have launched waves of missiles into Ukraine, which the military is adept at knocking down. The package also contains ammunition to shoot down unmanned air systems,” the US Department of Defense said in a statement.
Ukrainian cities have come under fire again in the past week with dozens of Russian missiles and drones targeting the capital Kyiv and other key cities.
Ukraine is preparing for a long-awaited spring offensive against invading Russian forces, but the latest US aid will not immediately arrive on the battlefield as it has yet to be obtained from defense industries or partners.
Buying from industry is intended to prevent the US military from depleting its own supplies, but also means that aid will take longer to reach Kiev than equipment pulled directly from existing US military inventories.
NEWS: US supplies Ukraine with $1.2 billion for air defense and artillery https://t.co/PZc0dqPGBF
— Department of Defense 🇺🇸 (@DeptofDefense) May 10, 2023
So far in FY 2023, the US Department of Defense has provided $5 billion in security assistance to Kiev under the Ukraine Security Assistance Initiative (USAI) in four separate tranches. In fiscal 2022, the US spent $6.3 billion in USAI funds.
The US has also rushed more than $35 billion worth of arms to Ukraine using the Presidential Drawdown Authority, which authorizes the president to transfer equipment and services from US stockpiles without Congressional authorization during an emergency.
Tuesday’s military aid comes as Congress and the White House debate ways to avoid a default on the national debt, with many Republicans demanding sharp cuts in domestic spending in exchange for lifting the debt cap.
Members of both the Democratic and Republican parties insist they support continued aid to Ukraine, including top Republican House Speaker Kevin McCarthy and Mitch McConnell, the top Republican in the Senate.