The administration of US President Joe Biden said Tuesday it will send $300 million in military aid to Ukraine.
This is the first such package in months, while a bill that would provide Ukraine with more than $60 billion has so far failed to win the support of the entire Congress.
The White House has been trying to find ways to send more military aid to Ukraine since previous funding approved by lawmakers expired at the end of December.
Biden’s national security adviser, Jake Sullivan, said March 12 that the funding would come from the Defense Department, which has saved money on contracts. Sullivan said the funds will be used to send artillery shells and ammunition for HIMARS multiple rocket launchers. But the aid will only last a few weeks, the Biden adviser added.
Russia has stepped up its frontline attacks this year amid ammunition and missile shortages in the Ukrainian army.
For several months now, the US authorities, which are considered the largest source of military aid to Ukraine for two years since the start of the full-scale Russian invasion, have been unable to get approval for new weapons supplies to the country due to a stalemate in Congress. The adoption of the relevant bill is hindered by Republicans among the supporters of former President Donald Trump. They link the issue to security measures on the southern border.
U.S. intelligence officials told Congress on March 11 that if the United States does not send aid to Ukraine soon, it will be difficult for the Ukrainian Armed Forces to stop Russia’s offensive.
Senate Democratic Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, welcoming Polish President Andrzej Duda to the upper chamber of Congress on Tuesday, reiterated the need to pass a bipartisan Ukraine aid bill as soon as possible.
Schumer recalled that, according to recent CNN reports, Russia currently produces three times more artillery shells than the United States and Europe combined. He also noted that further development of the situation will directly depend on who has more ammunition, Voice of America reports.
