US sending $350M in weapons, equipment to Ukraine in latest aid package

Soldiers load a High-Mobility Artillery Rocket System (HIMARS ) from a US Special Operations MC-130J aircraft
AP Photo/Roman Koksarov, File
Soldiers load a High-Mobility Artillery Rocket System (HIMARS ) from a US Special Operations MC-130J aircraft during military exercises at Spilve Airport in Riga, Latvia, Monday, Sept. 26, 2022. Ukraine has used U.S.-supplied HIMARS rocket launchers to repeatedly hit a key bridge on the Dnieper in Kherson and a large dam upstream also used as a crossing point. Ukrainian forces pressing an offensive in the south have zeroed in on Kherson, a provincial capital that has been under Russian control since the early days of the invasion.

The United States will send Ukraine another $350 million in military assistance including more missiles and air defense ammunition, the Biden administration announced Monday.  

The lethal aid package includes more ammunition for High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems (HIMARS) and howitzers, as well as ammunition for Bradley Infantry Fighting Vehicles, High-speed Anti-radiation missiles, anti-tank weapons and riverine boats, Secretary of State Antony Blinken said in a statement. 

A separate Defense Department release said the package also included grenade launchers, heavy fuel tankers, mine clearing equipment, mortar systems and rounds and additional artillery.

“This week, as Russia’s unconscionable war of aggression against Ukraine continues at great human cost, we are again reminded of the boundless courage and steadfast resolve of the Ukrainian people, and the strong support for Ukraine across the international community,” Blinken said.  

He also reiterated that the United States will stand with Ukraine “for as long as it takes.” 

The weapons and equipment will be made available through presidential drawdown authority, authority which allows the Pentagon to send weapons from its own stockpiles.  

The last such package — a $400 million weapons tranche — was announced earlier this month.

With Monday’s announcement, the United States has now committed more than $32 billion in lethal aid to Ukraine through presidential drawdown since Russia first attacked the country more than a year ago. 

Tags Antony Blinken Antony Blinken Joe Biden Russia-Ukraine war US-Ukraine relations

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