US preparing latest weapons package for Ukraine – AP
The US government is set to provide Ukraine with $125 million in additional weaponry and munitions, the Associated Press has reported, citing anonymous officials. According to the media outlet, the new package could be formally announced later on Friday, on the eve of Ukraine’s Independence Day.
Kiev sent thousands of troops along with dozens of pieces of military hardware into Russia’s Kursk Region in a surprise incursion earlier this month. Ukrainian officials have said the offensive’s main objective is to divert Russian forces from other areas along the front line. However, Moscow has responded by pursuing the intruders while simultaneously mounting pressure in Donbass.
In its report on Thursday, AP claimed that the new package would include air defense missiles, munitions for High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems (HIMARS), Javelins and several other types of anti-armor rocketry, 155mm and 105mm artillery shells, as well as counter-drone and counter-electronic warfare systems and other equipment.
The weapons will reportedly come directly from Pentagon stockpiles through the US president’s drawdown authority, meaning they can be delivered more quickly.
AP has estimated that this latest package, if confirmed, would put the total value of US military assistance to Ukraine at more than $55.7 billion since February 2022.
The article also pointed out that Washington has apparently approved this latest shipment despite still not being fully in the picture regarding Kiev’s operation on Russian soil.
Speaking on Thursday, Pentagon spokeswoman Sabrina Singh said “we are still working with Ukraine on how that fits into their strategic objectives on the battlefield itself.”
Earlier this month, the US Department of Defense said in a statement that it would send Kiev $125 million in military aid, made up of largely the same systems and equipment. In late July, Washington allocated a bigger batch of weaponry and ammunition, worth some $1.7 billion.
Earlier this year, military assistance to Kiev was held up for several months amid political bickering between Congressional Republicans and Democrats; their problems were eventually resolved with a foreign aid package in April.
GOP nominee and former President Donald Trump has repeatedly voiced plans to radically scale back military aid to Ukraine, if elected. He has also pledged to end the conflict within 24 hours of returning to office.
