WASHINGTON: The United States will send around $125 million in new military assistance to Ukraine, US officials said, even as Biden administration works to get a better understanding of Kyiv’s incursion into Russia and how it advances the broader battleground targets more than two years into the conflict.
US officials have disclosed that the latest package of aid includes munitions for High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems (HIMARS), air defense missiles, Javelins and an array of other anti-armor missiles, counter-drone and counter-electronic warfare systems and equipment, 155mm and 105mm artillery ammunition, and vehicles.
The officials told AP on condition of anonymity that official announcement could come on Friday, which is the eve of Independence Day of Ukraine. The arms are being supplied through presidential drawdown authority, which means they are taken from Pentagon stores and can be delivered more rapidly.
The military aid comes as Ukrainian troops continue to broaden their surprise operation into Russia, where officials say they have taken around 100 square kilometers of territory around Kursk. Russian forces, meanwhile, are making gains in the east side.
Pentagon has said continually that Washington has been talking with leaders in Ukraine to get a better valuation of their longer-term targets for the Kursk operation, especially as they see Moscow advancing near Pokrovsk.
Responding to a question regarding the Kursk operation, Pentagon spokeswoman Sabrina Singh said Thursday that they are still working with Kyiv on how that fits into their strategic goals on the battleground itself.
Ukrainian leader Volodymyr Zelensky made his first trip Thursday to the border region where his troops launched the operation on August 6. He added Ukraine’s military had taken control of another Russian area and arrested more prisoners of war.
The latest package of help brings the total amount of US security help to Ukraine to over $55.7 billion since Russia’s invasion in February 2022.
