On February 20, 2024, Ukrainian soldiers piled ammunition in a combat position in the direction of Bakhmut, Donetsk Oblast, Ukraine.
Diego Herrera Cacedo | Diego Herrera Cacedo Anadolu | Getty Images
The White House will provide $300 million worth of additional weapons to Ukraine, officials announced Tuesday, but Republican leaders are still holding up more funds in Congress.
The program will be provided through Presidential Drawback Authorization (PDA), which draws weapons from existing U.S. stockpiles. Officials said the military equipment shipped to Ukraine included anti-aircraft missiles, ammunition, artillery and anti-armor systems.
The news comes as Ukraine’s military faces severe weapons shortages during its two-year war with Russia.
“When Russian troops advance and shoot, Ukraine doesn’t have enough ammunition to fight back,” national security adviser Jake Sullivan said in announcing the new aid package.
Meanwhile, a senior defense official said the United States has “essentially exhausted its funding for Ukraine.”
Defense officials said they were able to raise the money through savings from long-term contracts with weapons manufacturers, but they called it a one-time arrangement.
With Congress deadlocked, the military has been forced to come up with creative ways to pay for Ukraine’s weapons and equipment. House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-Louisiana, declined to introduce a bill that would provide $60 billion in additional aid to Ukraine.
The last replenishment plan is in December 2022.America sent US$200 million in aid Traveled to Ukraine last December, but the funding came from the previous year.
It is unclear whether the latest weapons package includes long-range ballistic missiles.
On March 4, 2024, as the war between Russia and Ukraine lasted for two years, Ukrainian soldiers prepared explosives in the direction of Bakhmut, Donetsk Oblast, Ukraine.
Diego Herrera Cacedo | Diego Herrera Cacedo Anadolu | Getty Images
NBC News reported last month The Pentagon is considering providing emergency weapons, including powerful missiles, to Ukraine without waiting for Congress to approve funding.
Two defense officials said at the time that the U.S. Army’s inventory of Tactical Missile Systems (ATACMS) was limited and the U.S. was unlikely to ship it to Ukraine without the funds to replenish it.
The United States began supplying Ukraine with older medium-range anti-tank missile systems late last year. A long-range version of the missile would enable Ukraine to strike farther into the Russian-controlled Crimean peninsula.
In recent months, Russian troops have made progress In Ukraine, President Volodymyr Zelensky stepped up requests for additional military aid, saying his troops urgently needed ammunition and other weapons.
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