Biden announces nearly $3bn in new military aid for Ukraine

Washington DC: President Joe Biden announced Wednesday that he is sending USD 2.98 billion in new military aid to Ukraine that will enable forces there to fight for years to come.

In a statement, Biden said the aid will allow Ukraine to acquire air defense systems, artillery systems and munitions, drones and other equipment to ensure it can continue to defend itself over the long term. The announcement comes as Ukraine is celebrating its 1991 declaration of independence from the Soviet Union.

I know this independence day is bittersweet for many Ukrainians as thousands have been killed or wounded, millions have been displaced from their homes, and so many others have fallen victim to Russian atrocities and attacks, Biden said. But six months of relentless attacks have only strengthened Ukrainians' pride in themselves, in their country, and in their thirty-one years of independence.

The aid package is being provided under the Ukraine Security Assistance Initiative. Officials said it will include money for the small, hand-launched Puma drones, the longer-endurance Scan Eagle surveillance drones, which are launched by catapult, and, for the first time, the British Vampire drone system, which can be launched off ships. Several officials spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss the aid before its public release.

As Russia's war on Ukraine drags on, U.S. security assistance is shifting to a longer-term campaign that also will likely keep more American military troops in Europe into the future, U.S. officials said. Wednesday is Ukraine's independence day holiday and the six-month point in the war.

Unlike most previous packages, the new funding is largely aimed at helping Ukraine secure its medium- to long-term defense posture, according to officials familiar with the matter. Earlier shipments, most of them done under presidential drawdown authority, have focused on Ukraine's more immediate needs for weapons and ammunition and involved materiel that the Pentagon already has in stock that can be shipped in short order.

Besides providing longer-term assistance that Ukraine can use for potential future defense needs, the new package is intended to reassure Ukrainian officials that the United States intends to keep up its support, regardless of the day-to-day back and forth of the conflict, the officials said.