On Friday, Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin announced a fresh $6 billion arms buy for Ukraine, which he described as the largest to date. The purchase will include new military systems for Ukraine, such as additional Patriot missiles required to repel Russian missile barrages on its cities.
“This is the largest security assistance package that we’ve committed to date,” Austin stated at a Pentagon press briefing.
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“It will include critical interceptors for Ukraine’s Patriot and NASAMS air defense systems, more counter-drone systems and support equipment, significant amounts of artillery ammunition, air-to ground munitions, and maintenance and sustainment support,” he went on to say.
The Pentagon has sent new supplies to Ukraine twice this week as part of the $61 billion in aid that Congress and President Joe Biden agreed upon.
On Wednesday, the Biden administration proposed a $1 billion aid package to quickly supply Ukraine with guns and ammunition from existing US military stockpiles.
The $6 billion aid package unveiled Friday is part of the Ukraine Security Assistance Initiative (USAI), which awards contracts to American companies to produce weaponry that will suit Ukraine’s long-term security needs.
The creation of the weapons from scratch will delay their arrival in Ukraine, even with expedited contracts.
Providing new air defense systems for Ukraine has been a priority for the United States, and it was the subject of the Ukraine Defense Contact Group’s monthly meeting earlier Friday, which included 50 nations that provide weaponry to Ukraine.
“We urgently need Patriot systems and missiles for them,” Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky told the group via video message.
“This is how we can and should save lives right now. To ensure their safety, our cities must have at least seven patriots. You have these systems, and they have the potential to change the situation for the better,” he remarked.
“This year, Russian jets already used more than 9,000 guided aerial bombs against Ukraine, and we need the ability to shoot down the air combat aircraft so that they do not approach our positions and borders,” he stated.
Austin repeatedly stated during his news conference that the Patriot weapons systems were not a panacea, and instead, Ukraine’s air defense necessitated an integrated air defense system that incorporated a variety of weapons and capabilities.
Zelensky also claimed that the months-long wait for Congress to approve more US military help had given Russia an advantage on the battlefield.
“Although in a half-year while we were waiting for a decision on American support, the Russian army managed to seize the initiative on the battlefield, we can still now not only stabilize the front but also move forward, achieving our Ukrainian goals in the war,” he added.
He asserted that the artillery munitions outnumbered Ukrainian troops 10-to-1. “You can imagine what our soldiers feel when they simply have nothing to respond to enemy fire,” he said, adding that it “inspires Putin to fight on.”
