United States Secretary of State Antony Blinken announced on Monday that the U.S. would provide Ukraine with an additional $725 million in military weapons for its war with Russia. It’s the latest shipment of advanced weaponry being sent to Ukraine. Blinken announced the decision in a post on X.
“Today, I am announcing the delivery of $725 million in additional weapons and equipment for Ukraine’s defense,” Blinken said in the post. “The United States and more than 50 nations stand united with Ukraine.”
Blinken also described Monday’s aid announcement as vital to Ukraine’s efforts to fend off Russia. He claimed the weapons were necessary “to ensure Ukraine has the capabilities it needs to defend itself against Russian aggression.” It is also part of the previously announced security assistance package for Ukraine that President Joe Biden announced on September 26, the State Department announced in a press release.
“This security assistance provides key capabilities to support Ukraine’s most urgent battlefield needs, including air defense, munitions for rocket systems and artillery and antitank weapons,” said Air Force Maj. Gen. Pat Ryder, Pentagon press secretary.
The latest shipment included significant advanced weaponry, including Stinger missiles, Javelin missiles, artillery ammunition, High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems ammunition, Counter-Unmanned Aerial Systems munitions, drones, and landmines. It also included valuable equipment essential to “protect critical national infrastructure, spare parts, ancillary equipment, services, training, and transportation.
The inclusion of land mines is a significant policy change regarding U.S. weapon shipments. It marks the first time in decades that the U.S. has sent such weapons. Previously, land mines were discouraged from being included in weapon shipments due to the hazard they presented to civilians, the Kyiv Independent reported. More than 160 countries have banned them as a result. However, Ukraine has been requesting the weapons since the war began, primarily due to Russia’s reported use of them.
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Biden recently announced the U.S. would maximize its efforts to ensure Ukraine has all the weapons it needs in its fight with Russia. During Sunday’s episode of ABC’s This Week, national security adviser Jake Sullivan declared the Biden administration is trying to “strengthen” Ukraine as much as possible before his term ends on Jan. 20. President-elect Trump is not expected to be as enthusiastic as Biden has been in his support for Ukraine.
“We are going to do everything in our power for these 50 days to get Ukraine all the tools we possibly can to strengthen their position on the battlefield so that they’ll be stronger at the negotiating table,” said Sullivan. “And President Biden directed me to oversee a massive surge in the military equipment that we are delivering to Ukraine so that we have spent every dollar that Congress has appropriated to us by the time that President Biden leaves office.”
