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The US is sending more Patriot missiles to Ukraine and will spend $6 billion to build up domestic arms production to support Kiev, as the Joe Biden administration begins distributing funds released by Congress this week.
Lloyd Austin, the defense secretary, and CQ Brown, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said Friday that the $6 billion in military aid would be procured from U.S. defense contractors, meaning it will take longer to reach Ukraine , but strengthening their defenses should take a longer time frame.
The $6 billion package will include ammunition for air defense systems, including Patriots, and for the High Mobility Artillery Rocket System, known as Himars, as well as radars and drones, the Pentagon said.
The announcement comes two days after President Biden signed a $95 billion foreign aid package into law, including $61 billion for Ukraine, which has been battling Russia’s full-scale invasion for more than two years.
Shortly after the law was passed on Wednesday, the Pentagon also authorized the withdrawal of $1 billion worth of military equipment and weapons from stockpiles and their immediate delivery to Ukraine.
The $6 billion package announced Friday “underscores the United States’ strong and unwavering commitment to meeting Ukraine’s most urgent immediate and longer-term capability needs in the fight against Russian aggression as part of the global coalition we have with approximately 50 allies and.” partners have built,” the Pentagon minister said.
When the White House sought congressional approval for aid to Ukraine, it often argued that it would benefit U.S. defense manufacturers.
“We are helping Ukraine while investing in our own industrial base, strengthening our own national security and supporting jobs in nearly 40 states across America,” Biden said as he signed Congress’s long-delayed relief package into law this week.
Eric Fanning, chief executive of the Aerospace Industries Association, the largest lobbying group for U.S. defense contractors, described the legislation passed this week as a “much-needed cash injection that will secure America’s future by replenishing U.S. inventories and increasing manufacturing capacity here.” ” at home”.
Austin and Brown announced the $6 billion plan after a meeting with the Ukraine Contact Group, which brings together military leaders from a group of countries supporting Kiev. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky had previously called on Western countries to maintain their support.
“While we waited for a decision on American support, the Russian army managed to seize the initiative on the battlefield,” Zelensky said in a video message.
“We are currently forming new brigades to strengthen our positions. They need support, just like the brigades already operating on the front lines.”
Ukraine has asked for new supplies of air defense systems and missiles to protect Ukrainian cities and frontline troops from missile attacks.
The Russian military has fired more than 9,000 guided aerial bombs since the beginning of the year, Zelensky said. Rocket attacks destroyed several power plants across Ukraine this month, causing power outages.