WASHINGTON – Secretary of State Antony Blinken unveiled a new $1 billion aid package for Ukraine during his unannounced two-day trip to Kiev this week, but only a fraction of the money will go toward equipment and weapons military.
Less than 20% of the assistance (about $175 million) is intended to supply the critical ammunition that Kiev’s defenders desperately need to strengthen their counteroffensive and recapture Russian-occupied territory, according to a State Department breakdown.
This will include “components of the air defense system, [rockets] for HIMARS, munitions, munitions and communications systems,” the department said in a statement Wednesday.
While another $100 million will go toward “foreign military financing” – a State Department grant-like program that helps other nations purchase weapons and equipment – the vast majority of the $1 billion package is expected dollars support non-military aid.
The small amount set aside for military power comes after experts warned that Ukraine’s Western allies, including the United States, have delayed supplying necessary weapons crucial to the long-awaited counteroffensive, including Abrams tanks and warplanes. F-16 combat.
Secretary of State Antony Blinken will announce a new $1 billion aid package for Ukraine during his trip to kyiv this week.Photo by BRENDAN SMIALOWSKI/POOL/AFP via Getty Images
“Had more been approved earlier, with faster training and execution a clear priority, Ukraine would probably have been better off today, as Russia would have had less time to prepare and Ukraine would have had more combat power to apply to its objectives. before. retired US Major General Gordon “Skip” Davis, now a senior fellow at the Center for European Policy Analysis, previously told The Post.
Meanwhile, those non-military items include $300 million to “support law enforcement” and $206 million in humanitarian assistance for “food, water and shelter” for those “forced to flee to neighboring countries.”
The department said the law enforcement funds are intended to assist Ukrainian officials “in efforts to restore and maintain law and order in the liberated areas” of Ukraine that had been temporarily occupied by Russian soldiers, including those who still “face continuous bombing” from Moscow. .
Blinken meeting with Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky in kyiv on September 6, 2023.BRENDAN SMIALOWSKI/Pool via REUTERS
Another $90.5 million of the 10-figure package will go to “humanitarian demining assistance” as the Russians have mined Ukraine’s Donbas region.
It also includes $5.4 million in assets that the United States has claimed from the properties and funds of sanctioned Russian oligarchs. That money will be used “to support the reintegration and rehabilitation of veterans” of Ukrainian soldiers returning home from the battlefield.
The remaining approximately $203 million will go toward “transparency and accountability of institutions” to support “the fight against corruption, the rule of law, and the judiciary,” just days after the Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy fired his former Ukrainian Defense Minister Oleksii Reznikov. , accused of spending too much on food for troops and winter coats.
A Ukrainian soldier stationed near Bakhmut, in the Donetsk region, on September 4, 2023. AP Photo/Libkos
The new package comes a week after Blinken revealed a $250 million package of military equipment on August 29, drawn from $6.2 billion of funds discovered after a Pentagon accounting error that overstated billions of dollars. aid dollars to Ukraine.
As of that date, there was “approximately $5.75 billion in the restored Presidential Retirement Authority [funds] that remain available to Ukraine,” the Pentagon told reporters Tuesday.
While the exact contents of the upcoming package have yet to be revealed, last week’s package included air defense missiles, HIMARS munitions, artillery shells, and much-needed mine-clearing equipment.
Blinken touring the Alley of Heroes at the Berkovetske Cemetery in kyiv with Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba. Press Service of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine via AP
Meanwhile, Blinken met with Ukrainian Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal in Kiev on Wednesday, where they “discussed the United States’ strong support for Ukraine’s recovery, reconstruction, and reform efforts,” the State Department said in a report by the meeting.
The top US diplomat also emphasized “the United States’ commitment to work together with its partners to address Ukraine’s energy, economic, and humanitarian needs.”
Later, he will also meet with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba “to discuss Ukraine’s ongoing counteroffensive and future recovery and reconstruction efforts,” the State Department spokesperson said. Matthew Miller.
Blinken shakes hands with Ukraine Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal during his visit to Kiev.BRENDAN SMIALOWSKI/Pool via REUTERS
Blinken is scheduled to stay in Ukraine for two days.
The United States has provided more than $43 billion worth of weapons and military equipment to Ukraine since Russia invaded the nation on February 24, 2022, according to the Pentagon.
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