Unlock the White House Watch newsletter for free
Your guide to what the 2024 US election means for Washington and the world
The US has said it will unleash almost $6bn in additional aid to Ukraine, as the Biden administration rushes to provide Kyiv with fresh firepower before president-elect Donald Trump takes office next month.
US President Joe Biden said on Monday his administration would continue to surge “as much assistance to Ukraine as quickly as possible”, including by delivering older American equipment to the battlefield.
“The United States will continue to work relentlessly to strengthen Ukraine’s position in this war over the remainder of my time in office,” Biden said.
The US on Monday said it would provide $2.5bn in new military aid and $3.4bn in direct budget assistance to Kyiv.
Monday’s transfer includes $1.25bn in assistance from US weapons and ammunition stockpiles as well as $1.22bn in funds from the Ukraine Security Assistance Initiative (USAI), which allows Ukraine to purchase goods directly from the US defence industry.
“The Department of Defense is in the process of delivering hundreds of thousands of artillery rounds, thousands of rockets and hundreds of armoured vehicles, which will strengthen Ukraine’s hand as it heads into the winter,” said Biden.
US officials said earlier this month that they would try to spend as much of the remaining $5.6bn allocated by Congress for weapons transfers to Ukraine, but that they would not be able to drain the account before Trump’s inauguration in three weeks. Whatever funds remain in January will be available for Trump and his team to use to send additional weapons.
Volodymyr Zelenskyy, Ukraine’s president, on Monday thanked Biden for the “crucial contribution” and said, “we must continue moving toward peace through strength to achieve our common goal of peace in 2025 — a goal shared by Ukraine and all its partners.”
The US Treasury department also said on Monday that it would provide Ukraine with $3.4bn in direct economic assistance, the final disbursement of an allocation granted by Congress earlier in 2024.
“Stopping Russia’s illegal invasion will help uphold a global democratic, rules-based order that advances American security and economic interests, and it will send an unmistakable message to autocrats and would-be aggressors around the world that they will face unshakeable resolve,” said US Treasury secretary Janet Yellen.
Trump’s scepticism of the Nato alliance and pledges to end the war between Russia and Ukraine quickly have raised doubts about the US’s future commitment to Kyiv’s defence. Trump’s team has told European officials that the president-elect plans to continue supplying military aid to Ukraine but that Nato member states must increase defence spending to 5 per cent of GDP. Only 23 of Nato’s 32 members at present meet the alliance’s 2 per cent target, and none meet Trump’s 5 per cent goal.
Ukraine is in desperate need of additional defences to protect its infrastructure as Russia steps up attacks on its energy system in the cold winter months. A Russian attack on Christmas Day left more than half a million people without heat, water and electricity.
Monday’s package includes ammunition for the high mobility artillery rocket system, air defence munitions to counter drone and missile attacks on Ukrainian cities and infrastructure, TOW anti-tank missiles, and other weapons and ammunition.
There are two separate pots of money for Washington to use to send Ukraine lethal aid — the USAI funds and the funds earmarked for the Pentagon to transfer weapons from its stockpiles. With Monday’s announcement, there will be no more USAI funds remaining, though there are still billions available to the US to send weapons from its stockpiles.
Source link
