“I am proud to announce nearly $2.5 billion in security assistance to Ukraine today, as the Ukrainian people continue to defend their independence and freedom in the face of Russian aggression,” Joe Biden, who will leave the White House on January 20, said in a statement.
The aid, announced Monday, includes on the one hand immediately available weapons, which the Pentagon is taking from American stocks, for an amount of 1.25 billion dollars, and on the other hand equipment ordered from manufacturers but which will be delivered later, for an amount of $1.22 billion.
The outgoing Democratic president indicates in his press release that he has exhausted the credits granted by Congress in the spring, after tough negotiations, to order weapons from the defense industry for Ukraine.
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Shells, missiles, armored vehicles
He also ensures that his government continues to send the Ukrainian army as many weapons as possible, in particular older generation equipment taken from the reserves of the American forces.
The Pentagon has “undertaken to deliver hundreds of thousands of artillery charges, thousands of missiles, and hundreds of armored vehicles that will reinforce Ukrainian positions as winter begins,” he said.
According to a separate statement from the US State Department, among the weapons immediately made available by the Ministry of Defense will be drones, ammunition for multiple rocket launchers of the “HIMARS” type, optically guided missiles, systems anti-tank weapons, air-to-ground ammunition and spare parts.
“The United States and more than 50 nations will continue together to ensure that Ukraine has the capabilities it needs to defend itself against Russian aggression,” Secretary of State Antony Blinken said, as quoted in the press release.
Ukrainian Defense Minister Roustem Umerov welcomed the new aid program in a message posted on social media on Monday, saying he was “grateful.”
“The United States is a key ally of Ukraine and provides us with invaluable assistance. Together, we will prevail,” he continued.
Donald Trump has repeatedly criticized the amounts of American aid to Ukraine.
He said he could secure a peace agreement in 24 hours between Moscow and kyiv, but without saying how, making Ukrainians fear that Washington would impose conditions dictated by Russia.
