The arms package, worth an estimated $1 billion, jump-starts a massive U.S. effort to support Ukraine’s struggling military as the war with Russia enters its third year. The Pentagon, expecting lawmakers to end their impasse, signaled in recent days that it was prepared to send at least some of that resupply to the battlefield within days.
President Biden, in his remarks Wednesday morning, announced that shipments would begin in the “next few hours.”
The injection of artillery munitions, in particular, will be welcomed at the front, where Ukrainian army units – forced to ration their dwindling stocks – have holed up and sought to slow Russia’s advance . Western-supplied howitzers were used to help blunt efforts to break through their lines and pin down the Russian formations. Ukrainian troops also used U.S.-supplied rocket artillery to destroy command posts and equipment beyond the front lines.
Replenishing Ukraine’s air defenses will help protect its battered cities and infrastructure, which has been the subject of incessant attacks by Russian missiles and drones.
Meanwhile, Russia, aided by personnel replacements and its own equipment resupply, has advanced slowly into Ukraine’s eastern Donetsk region, consolidating around the town of Chasiv Yar. Capturing Chasiv Yar would allow Moscow’s forces to launch attacks from high ground, threatening major cities important to Ukraine’s defense and supplies.
Renewed aid alone is unlikely to tip the scales in kyiv’s favor, and U.S. officials have said they foresee a difficult year ahead, in which Ukraine will seek to hold back Russian forces while preparing its own units to resume the offensive in the future. . They say kyiv’s priorities include controlling disputed areas in the country’s north and east, maintaining its Black Sea trade route and reducing Moscow’s influence. ability to attack from the south endangering the Russian-occupied Crimean peninsula.
The package’s inventory highlights Ukraine’s urgent and ongoing needs. The United States will provide Stinger air defense munitions and other munitions, including anti-ship missiles, which the Ukrainians modified so they could be launched from Soviet systems. The Pentagon will also ship Bradley Fighting Vehicles, Armored Personnel Carriers and Humvees.
The resupply of anti-armor weapons will come at a particularly crucial time, as Russian forces have advanced and made tactical adjustments along the front lines. More vehicles were used in assaults on Ukrainian positions compared to six months ago, a deputy battalion commander near Chasiv Yar recently told The Washington Post.
The US package includes TOW missiles, which can be used with fixed launchers or atop vehicles. It also includes Swedish-made Javelin anti-tank missiles and AT-4 anti-armor systems, which can help provide multi-layered defenses against Russian armored incursions.
Other aid concerns ammunition for small arms, notably .50 caliber shells to shoot down drones, support vehicles to carry equipment and night vision devices, and spare parts and training ammunition.
The new US aid package is one of the largest the United States has provided to Ukraine since Russia’s full-scale invasion began in early 2022. Washington’s latest arms transfer, totaling $300 million, was put in place in March after the Pentagon identified “unanticipated cost savings.” in recent arms contracts.
The $61 billion for Ukraine newly authorized by Congress funds the Department of Defense to consolidate and ship weapons, munitions and equipment from existing U.S. military stockpiles, then to replenish those stocks with new purchases from national companies. It also includes funds to directly purchase weapons for kyiv.
Missy Ryan contributed to this report.
washingtonpost
