US to pour another $1.3 billion worth of weapons into Ukraine war
The United States has announced that it will provide an additional $1.3 billion in weapons aid for Ukraine, deepening its involvement in the war in defiance of repeated warnings by Russia.
The package, announced on Wednesday, includes air defense systems and related munitions, anti-tank missiles, drones, and other military equipment.
The package is 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.
It will be supplied through the US defense industry or partners.
The military assistance comes as Ukrainian forces are fighting to advance against Russian troops in a slow-moving counteroffensive.
Chairman of the US Joint Chiefs of Staff General Mark Milley told journalists on Tuesday that Ukrainian troops are facing heavily fortified Russian positions that include complex minefields, tank obstacles, barbed wire and trenches.
He also said that Ukraine has "a significant amount of combat power not yet committed."
"Right now, they are preserving their combat power, and they are slowly and deliberately and steadily working their way through all these minefields, and it's a tough fight."
Reacting to the new package, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on Wednesday hailed Washington’s "unwavering" support for Kiev.
The aid "will help save Ukrainian lives and move closer to our common victory", Zelensky wrote on Twitter. "We appreciate the unwavering support of the friendly American people."
Washington has provided more than $42 billion in security assistance to Ukraine since Russia launched its special military operation in late February 2022.
Despite Washington’s continued military support to Kiev since then, the Biden administration has been clear that there will be no US combat forces fighting against the Russians in Ukraine.
Russia has repeatedly warned that the influx of Western weapons will only prolong the war and add to the suffering of the Ukrainian people.
Republican lawmakers have voiced concerns about the haphazard military shipments to Ukraine.
Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene said Washington’s military aid to Ukraine was a US-led “proxy war” against Russia.
She said the Ukraine war had placed a heavy financial burden on the shoulders of Americans, who were already grappling with poverty.
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