WASHINGTON — The United States is predicted to announce it is going to ship $1.25 billion in navy help to Ukraine, US officers mentioned Friday, because the Biden administration pushes to get as a lot support as doable to Kiev earlier than leaving workplace on January twentieth.
The giant support package deal features a vital quantity of munitions, together with for the nation’s superior surface-to-air missile techniques and the HAWK air protection system. It may even present Stinger missiles and 155mm and 105mm artillery shells, officers mentioned.
The officers, who mentioned they anticipated the announcement Monday, spoke on situation of anonymity to supply particulars not but made public.
The new support comes as Russia has launched a barrage of assaults on Ukrainian energy crops in current days, though Ukraine mentioned it had intercepted a major variety of missiles and drones. Russian and Ukrainian forces are additionally nonetheless engaged in a fierce battle across the Russian border area of Kursk, the place Moscow has despatched hundreds of North Korean troops to assist retake territory seized from Ukraine.
Earlier this month, senior protection officers acknowledged that the Defense Department might not be capable of ship all the remaining $5.6 billion in Pentagon weapons and gear permitted by Congress for Ukraine earlier than the President-elect Donald Trump takes the oath of workplace.
Trump has talked about getting some form of negotiated deal between Ukraine and Russia and talked about his relationship with Russian President Vladimir Putin. Many U.S. and European leaders fear that this might end in a nasty deal for Ukraine and fear that it’s going to not present Ukraine with all of the arms funding permitted by Congress.
The assist in the brand new package deal is presidential drawdown authority, which permits the Pentagon to take weapons off cabinets and rapidly ship them to Ukraine. This newest help would scale back the remaining quantity to roughly $4.35 billion.
Officials mentioned they hope an inflow of support will assist strengthen Ukraine’s place, ought to Zelensky determine it is time to negotiate.
A senior protection official mentioned that whereas the United States will proceed to produce weapons to Ukraine till January 20, there could also be leftover funds that will probably be obtainable to be spent by the long run Trump administration.
According to the Pentagon, there additionally stays about $1.2 billion in long-term financing by way of the Ukraine Security Assistance Initiative, which is used to pay for weapons contracts that may not be delivered for a yr or extra. Officials mentioned the administration plans to launch all the cash earlier than the top of the calendar yr.
If the brand new package deal is included, the United States has offered greater than $64 billion in safety help to Ukraine since Russia invaded the nation in February 2022.
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