Blinken: We continue to provide arms to Ukraine
According to Al Jazeera on Saturday morning, the US Secretary of State said that with the latest package of US $ 150 million security assistance to Ukraine, Washington’s military assistance to Kiev has reached about $ 3.8 billion since the beginning of the Russian invasion.
“We will continue to provide the weapons that Ukrainian forces are effectively using to defend their country and the freedom of their countrymen,” Blinken said.
According to IRNA, US President Joe Biden on Friday evening local time announced a new package of security assistance to Ukraine, which includes artillery, radar and other additional equipment.
US officials have previously stated separately that the military package is worth $ 150 million to Ukraine.
Biden did not specify the value of the security package in his statement, but said his government had used almost all of its financial resources to help Ukraine and had asked Congress to approve its proposed $ 33 billion bailout package for Ukraine.
A White House official said the latest package for $ 150 million worth of equipment includes 25,000 155mm artillery shells, anti-artillery radars, field and field equipment and spare parts.
Earlier, the Biden government requested $ 33 billion in additional funding to support Ukraine over the next few months.
Deputies from both parties have stated that they want the urgent approval of the emergency budget requested (by the Biden administration), but there is no immediate announcement as to when the House of Representatives and the Senate will hold this vote, especially on disputes. The law, which usually takes place between two parties, has not been enacted.
This budget includes security, economic and humanitarian assistance. The $ 33 billion request includes $ 20.4 billion in military and security assistance to Ukraine.
A senior US official told reporters that the $ 20 billion includes $ 5 billion in weapons disarmament, $ 6 billion in the Ukraine Security Assistance Initiative and $ 4 billion in the State Department’s foreign military funding program.
US State Department spokesman Ned Price announced at a news conference on Thursday evening that his country would provide an additional $ 387 million in additional humanitarian assistance to Ukraine through the United States Agency for International Development.
Criticizing the West’s indifference to Moscow’s security concerns, Russian President Vladimir Putin on February 21, 2022, recognized the independence of the Donetsk and Luhansk People’s Republics in the Donbas region.
Three days later, on Thursday, February 24, 1400, Putin launched a so-called “special operation” against Ukraine, shifting tensions between Moscow and Kiev to a military confrontation.
The war in Ukraine has entered its third month, and reactions to the Russian invasion continue.