Sylvie Claire / May 7, 2022
Joe Biden on Friday announced new military aid to Ukraine to fight the Russian invasion, including artillery ammunition and radar, but warned that arms funds for Kiev were now virtually exhausted.
A U.S. official said the aid was worth $150 million, well below previous U.S. arms shipments. It includes 25,000 155-mm shells, counter-battery radars to spot Russian artillery fire and communications jamming devices, he said.
Congress must quickly provide the funding needed to strengthen Ukraine on the battlefield and at the negotiating table, the U.S. president said in a statement about the massive $33 billion budget request to the U.S. Congress.
For Ukraine to succeed in this next phase of the war, its international partners, including the United States, must continue to demonstrate their unity and determination to keep arms and ammunition flowing into Ukraine without interruption, he insisted.
Since the start of the Russian invasion on February 24, Joe Biden's administration has provided some $3.5 billion in military aid to Kiev. The previous pledge was for $800 million.
The United States is providing a historic amount of security assistance to Ukraine at a sustained pace, the Democratic president said, noting that U.S. and other allied support was critical to Ukraine's victory in the battle for Kiev.
Joe Biden is scheduled to participate Sunday in a virtual meeting of the leaders of the G7 major powers with also Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, on the occasion of May 8, the day marking the end of the Second World War in Europe.