In defiance of Russia’s repeated warnings, the United States has announced that it will give Ukraine an additional $1.03 billion in weapons assistance, intensifying its involvement in the conflict.
The package, which was made public on Wednesday, consists of drones, anti-tank missiles, air defense systems, and related munitions.
The package is a part of US efforts to meet “Ukraine’s pressing requirements by committing critical near-term capabilities while also building the enduring capacity of Ukraine’s armed forces,” the Pentagon said in a statement.
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It will be delivered by means of partners or the US defense industry.
The military aid arrives as Ukrainian forces struggle to advance against Russian troops in a plodding counteroffensive.
General Mark Milley, the chairman of the US Joint Chiefs of Staff, told reporters on Tuesday that Ukrainian troops are battling heavily fortified Russian positions that feature intricate minefields, tank obstacles, barbed wire, and trenches.
Additionally, he noted that Ukraine still has “a significant amount of combat power available.”
They are currently preserving their combat power while navigating all of these minefields slowly, deliberately, and steadily. It is a difficult battle.”
Volodymyr Zelensky, the president of Ukraine, praised Washington for its “unwavering” support of Kyiv in response to the new package on Wednesday.
The assistance “will help save Ukrainian lives and move us closer to our shared victory,” Zelensky wrote on Twitter. “We value the friendly American people’s steadfast support.”
Since Russia began its special military operation in late February 2022, Washington has given Ukraine security assistance worth more than $42 billion.
The Biden administration has made it clear that no US combat forces will be engaged in fighting against the Russians in Ukraine, despite Washington’s ongoing military assistance to Kyiv since then.
Russia has cautioned numerous times that the introduction of Western weapons will only serve to prolong the conflict and worsen the suffering of the Ukrainian people.
Regarding the haphazard military shipments to Ukraine, Republican lawmakers have expressed their concerns.
Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene claimed that Washington’s military assistance to Ukraine was part of a “proxy war” being waged by the US against Russia.
She asserted that Americans, who were already struggling with poverty, were now bearing a significant financial burden as a result of the conflict in Ukraine.
