The U.S. has approved a new $150 million weapons aid package for Ukraine, which arrives as the Biden administration is seeking billions of dollars in new supplemental funding to continue security assistance efforts for Kyiv.
The new weapons aid on Thursday, which is the 49th package of capabilities pulled from existing Pentagon inventories, includes providing Ukraine with additional air defense capabilities, 155mm artillery rounds and anti-tank weapons.
“This security assistance package is another visible signal of the United States’ continued commitment to supporting the Ukrainian people in the face of Russian aggression. The United States remains committed to working with allies and partners to provide Ukraine with capabilities to meet its immediate battlefield needs, and the Biden administration calls on Congress to meet its commitment to the people of Ukraine by passing additional funding to ensure Ukraine continues to have what it needs to defend itself against Russia’s brutal war of choice,” the Pentagon said in a statement on Thursday.
The Biden administration last week rolled out its $106 billion emergency spending request with $61.4 billion for Ukraine support, which includes $18 billion for replenishing stockpiles of equipment and increasing production capacity and another $12 billion for the Ukraine Security Assistance Initiative, which are funds used to procure equipment from industry to be transferred to Kyiv (Defense Daily, Oct. 20).
New House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) has not yet indicated plans for when he expects the lower chamber to take up the supplemental spending request (Defense Daily, Oct. 25).
White House National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan has said the U.S. has “nearly run out” of previously appropriated funding for Ukraine aid and authorities related to security assistance efforts to support Ukraine in its ongoing fight against Russia’s invasion.
Thursday’s package is the latest to be funded from the additional $6.2 billion the Pentagon discovered after it overestimated the value of earlier aid provided to Ukraine.
Ukraine is set to receive additional munitions for RTX [RTX] and Kongsberg’s NASAMS air defense systems, RTX-built AIM-9M and TOW missiles, Stinger and Javelin missiles and additional ammunition for Lockheed Martin’s [LMT] HIMARS launchers.
The new weapons aid package also includes 155mm and 105mm artillery rounds, more than 2 million rounds of small arms ammunition, night vision devices and demolition munitions for obstacle clearing, according to the Pentagon.
Air Force Brig. Gen. Patrick Ryder, the Pentagon press secretary, told reporters on Tuesday the department is “confident” it can continue meeting both Ukraine’s and Israel’s requests for 155mm artillery ammunition while ensuring necessary stockpile levels to maintain U.S. military readiness (Defense Daily, Oct. 24).
Along with supplying 155mm artillery rounds to Ukraine to assist in its fight against Russia’s ongoing invasion, the U.S. has also provided Israel with the ammunition in military aid donations following Hamas’ incursion on October 7 and as the country prepares for a potential ground invasion of Gaza.