Biden administration authorizes $725 million in additional security assistance for Ukraine - CNN

Washington CNN  — 

The Biden medication authorized an further $725 cardinal dollars successful information assistance for Ukraine Friday, arsenic the state recovers from Russia’s caller barrage of rocket attacks connected civilian targets.

The Presidential Drawdown includes “munitions, arms and instrumentality from US Department of Defense inventories,” Secretary of State Antony Blinken said successful a connection Friday.

The further assistance brings the full US subject assistance to Ukraine since January 2021 to much than $18 billion, Blinken said.

The assistance includes High-speed Anti-Radiation Missiles (HARMs), anti-tank weapons, tiny arms arsenic good ammunition for High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems (HIMARS) and tiny arms, according to a property merchandise from the Department of Defense. The assistance bundle besides provides aesculapian supplies, much than 200 precocious mobility vehicles, and thousands of artillery rounds and rounds of Remote Anti-Armor Mine (RAAM) systems.

“We volition proceed to basal with the radical of Ukraine arsenic they support their state and independency with bonzer courageousness and boundless determination,” Blinken said. “The capabilities we are delivering are cautiously calibrated to marque the astir quality connected the battlefield for Ukraine.”

The announcement for further assistance follows a brutal week of deadly Russian strikes successful Ukraine, including successful the Kyiv region, connected civilian targets. The strikes person damaged Ukraine’s powerfulness systems, forcing radical to trim depletion to debar blackouts.

The strikes person been viewed arsenic retaliation for the caller detonation connected the Crimea bridge that curtailed roadworthy and obstruction traffic, striking a stroke against Russia’s subject effort successful Ukraine.

US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin said connected Thursday pursuing the NATO defence ministerial meeting, different countries person committed to aiding Ukraine arsenic well. Spain volition supply further aerial defence “Hawk systems” to Ukraine, Austin said, and, according to the Defense Department’s release, Germany precocious delivered its archetypal of 4 IRIS-T aerial defence systems to Ukraine.

CNN previously reported that Western sanctions person sharply curtailed Russia’s quality to replenish the munitions it is utilizing successful Ukraine, according to a caller investigation from the Office of the Director of National Intelligence, forcing Moscow to task its quality services with uncovering ways to evade restrictions and procure the captious exertion and parts to prolong its warfare effort.