Washington:The Biden administration will send about $125 million in new military aid to Ukraine, U.S. officials said Thursday, even as Washington works to better understand kyiv’s incursion into Russia and how it advances broader battlefield objectives more than two years after the war began.
U.S. officials said the latest aid package includes air defense missiles, munitions for High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems (HIMARS), Javelins and a range of other anti-armor missiles, anti-drone and anti-electronic warfare systems and equipment, 155mm and 105mm artillery munitions, vehicles and other equipment.
The officials spoke on condition of anonymity because the aid has not been announced publicly. A formal announcement could come as early as Friday, the day before Ukraine’s visit. Independence Day.
The weapons are supplied under presidential authorization, meaning they are taken from Pentagon stockpiles and can be delivered more quickly.
The aid comes as Ukrainian forces continue to expand their surprise offensive into Russia, where officials say they have seized about 100 square kilometers (62 square miles) of territory around Kursk. Russian troops, meanwhile, are advancing in the east around the Ukrainian city of Pokrovsk, a critical logistics hub.
Pentagon officials have repeatedly said the United States has been talking to Ukrainian leaders to get a better assessment of their long-term goals for the Kursk operation, particularly as they see Russia advancing near Pokrovsk.
If Pokrovsk falls, the defeat would jeopardize Ukraine’s defenses and bring Russia closer to its stated goal of capturing the Donetsk region. Russian soldiers are now just 10 kilometers away.
Asked about the Kursk operation, Pentagon spokeswoman Sabrina Singh said Thursday that “we continue to work with Ukraine on how this fits into their strategic objectives on the battlefield itself.” The United States, she said, understands that Ukraine wants to build a buffer zone along the border, but the administration still has more questions about how to advance Ukraine’s broader war effort.
President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky On Thursday he made his first visit to the border area where his forces launched the offensive on August 6. He said the Kiev army had taken control of another Russian village and captured more prisoners of war.
The latest aid package brings the total amount of U.S. security assistance to Ukraine to more than $55.7 billion since the Russian invasion in February 2022.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by Republic and is published from a syndicated feed.)
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