US Plans to Announce $200 Million in Military Aid to Ukraine
According to American officials, the United States is set to provide Ukraine with up to $200 million in additional military assistance as part of a package expected to be announced this Wednesday, reports Voice of America.
The publication, citing American officials, states that the Pentagon will continue to offer its arsenal of aid, despite Congress excluding new assistance for Ukraine from temporary spending measures.
The Pentagon still has around $5 billion in Congress-approved military aid funding for Ukraine after it discovered in June that it had overestimated the value of arms sent to Ukraine by approximately $6 billion, according to official sources cited by Voice of America during the error's revelation.
When budgeting for its aid package, the Department of Defence factored in costs for replacing weaponry provided to Ukraine, even though it was supposed to comprise the total value of the equipment actually sent, official sources told Voice of America on the condition of anonymity ahead of the official announcement.
The new package includes air defence weapons such as AIM-9 Sidewinder missiles, artillery munitions for High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems (HIMARS), TOW anti-tank missiles, and 155mm and 105mm shells, according to an anonymous American official who spoke to Voice of America prior to the official announcement.
It also includes small arms ammunition, counter-Russian obstacle breach munitions, unmanned aerial vehicle systems, and electronic warfare capabilities.
This marks the 48th instance in which the US has used presidential authority to expedite military hardware to the Ukrainian military.
Since Russia's unprovoked military invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, the US has provided Ukraine with approximately $44 billion in security assistance.
This aid package arrives as Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin is set to hold another meeting in Brussels on Wednesday with the Contact Group on Defence of Ukraine, comprising allies supporting Ukraine.
Last month, Congress did not include aid to Ukraine in a bill to prevent a government shutdown, citing opposition from the Republican Party faction. Shortly after the bill's passage, Kevin McCarthy was removed from his position as Speaker of the House.
Now, the House is set to vote for a new Speaker, and the fate of the new aid to Ukraine may hinge on the choice of the Speaker, with one of the leading candidates favouring continued aid to Ukraine while the other does not.