Washington announced on Monday, December 2, additional military aid for Ukraine, valued at $725 million and including missiles and anti-personnel mines, according to a press release from American Secretary of State Antony Blinken. “The United States is providing a significant new batch of weapons and equipment. This additional aid is valued at $725 million,” according to the text.
“Ship everything available” before Donald Trump returns
Less than two months before Donald Trump's inauguration, Joe Biden's administration says it wants to “ensure that Ukraine has the capabilities it needs to defend itself against Russian aggression.” Last month, the United States announced a first delivery of antipersonnel mines to Ukraine, a decision criticized by human rights organizations. Antipersonnel mines are explosive devices that continue to kill and maim people long after conflicts have ended.
US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said the move was necessitated by the fact that Russian forces were conducting their operations with dismounted infantry units rather than vehicles. The Ukrainians “need things that can help slow down this effort on the part of the Russians,” Lloyd Austin told reporters last month.
Outgoing President Joe Biden is seeking to speed up aid delivery to Ukraine. The White House National Security Advisor, Jake Sullivan, had mentioned the total sum of six billion dollars to be spent before the end of January and warned of the risks of a cessation of support from the United States.
“By the end of the outgoing administration, they're going to try to ship whatever is available,” like armored vehicles and small arms ammunition, “that Ukraine needs and the U.S. possess in large quantities,” Mark Cancian, of the Center for International and Strategic Studies (CSIS) in the American capital, recently told AFP.
Donald Trump's statements on Ukraine have raised fears in kyiv and Europe about the future of American aid under his administration. On Sunday, November 30, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said his country needed security guarantees from NATO and more weapons to defend itself before any talks with Russia.
