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Defense Department announces $425M aid package for Ukraine, cleaning out USA’s long-term assistance fund

By Tony Bertuca / November 3, 2023  https://insidedefense.com/insider/dod-announces-425m-aid-package-ukraine-cleaning-out-long-term-assistance-fund

The Pentagon today announced a $425 million military aid package for Ukraine, with $125 million accounting for immediate weapons transfers from U.S. stocks and the remaining $300 million exhausting what is left of the Ukraine Security Assistance Initiative meant for long-term defense needs.

The weapons transfer package funded via presidential “drawdown” authority includes:

•           Additional munitions for National Advanced Surface-to-Air Missile Systems (NASAMS);
•           Additional ammunition for High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems (HIMARS);
•           155mm and 105mm artillery rounds; 
•           Tube-Launched, Optically Tracked, Wire-Guided (TOW) missiles;
•           Javelin and AT-4 anti-armor systems;
•           More than 3 million rounds of small arms ammunition and grenades; 
•           Demolitions munitions for obstacle clearing;
•           M18A1 Claymore anti-personnel munitions;
•           12 trucks to transport heavy equipment; 
•           Cold weather gear; and
•           Spare parts, maintenance, and other field equipment.

The USAI portion of the package, which includes contracts for “additional laser-guided munitions to counter Unmanned Aerial Systems,” makes use of $300 million provided under a continuing resolution that Congress recently passed and “exhausts the remaining USAI funds currently available to support Ukraine,” according to the Pentagon.

Senior defense officials said the department’s weapons transfer authority is also nearly spent.

“The administration continues to call on Congress to meet its commitment to the people of Ukraine by passing additional funding to ensure Ukraine has what it needs to defend itself against Russia’s brutal war of choice,” the Pentagon said.

Congress, meanwhile, has not yet approved additional aid for Ukraine as some House Republicans oppose it. #nuclear #antinuclear #nuclearfree #NoNukes #Israel #Palestine

November 6, 2023 - Posted by Christina Macpherson | Ukraine, USA, weapons and war