US President Joe Biden approved on Wednesday the drawdown of up to $1 billion in weapons for Ukraine from the Pentagon’s stockpile.
The Pentagon also approved another $850 million in security assistance for Ukraine under its Ukraine Security Assistance Initiative.
This will bring total US military assistance for Ukraine to an unprecedented $21.9 billion since 2021.
“Today’s assistance for the first time includes the Patriot Air Defense System, capable of bringing down cruise missiles, short range ballistic missiles, and aircraft at a significantly higher ceiling than previously provided air defense systems,” Secretary of State Antony Blinken said in a statement.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy is in Washington today where he will meet with Biden and other senior US officials before heading to the US Capitol. Zelenskyy will address a joint session of Congress where bipartisan support for Ukraine is expected to be reaffirmed with nearly $40 billion in support for Kyiv in 2023.
“Over the past three hundred days, the Kremlin has tried and failed to wipe Ukraine off the map,” Blinken said. “Now, Russia is trying to weaponize winter by freezing and starving Ukrainian civilians and forcing families from their homes.”