U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin announced during a visit to Kyiv on Monday a new package of $400 million in new arms for Ukraine, including armoured vehicles and anti-tank weapons.
“I’m pleased to announce today a commitment of a $400 million presidential draw down package to provide your forces with additional munitions, armored vehicles and anti-tank weapons,” Austin said during a meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
His visit to Ukraine is being seen as a show of U.S. support for Kyiv just two weeks ahead of a U.S. presidential election that is casting uncertainty over the future of Western support.
But despite the show of solidarity with Kyiv, it was not expected to answer some of the Ukrainian President’s loudest calls for changes to U.S. policy, like lifting Washington’s restrictions on using U.S.-supplied weapons to hit targets far deep in Russian territory.
Former U.S President Donald Trump has indicated that he would be more reluctant than Biden to continue to support Ukraine, which could deprive Kyiv of its biggest military and financial backer.
Austin played down such concerns.
“I’ve seen bipartisan support for Ukraine over the last 2-1/2 years, and I fully expect that we’ll continue to see the bipartisan support from Congress,” he said.
The retired four star general has been one of Ukraine‘s staunchest advocates, building a coalition of dozens of nations which has supplied Kyiv with weaponry that has helped it deal heavy blows to Russian forces.
Austin’s trip, his fourth and likely final visit as President Joe Biden’s Pentagon chief, will include in-depth discussions about U.S. efforts to help Kyiv shore up its defences as Moscow’s forces advance in the east.
As Austin stepped off the train in Kyiv after an overnight journey from Poland, Ukrainian officials reported new Russian attacks overnight on the Ukrainian capital that damaged residential buildings and injuring at least one civilian.
Austin arrived shortly after Zelenskky said that Ukraine had “clear data” about North Korea supplying military personnel to Russia.
In a video statement posted on social media on Sunday evening, the Ukrainian President said, “A new threat has emerged — the malign alliance between Russia and North Korea.”
He said, “We expect a proper and fair response from our partners on this matter.”
“If the world remains silent now, and if we face North Korean soldiers on the front lines as regularly as we are defending against drones, it will benefit no one in this world and will only prolong this war,” Zelenskyy said.
Zelenskyy last met Austin last Thursday at NATO headquarters in Brussels, where he pitched his “victory plan”.
He received pledges of continued support but no endorsement from key allies of his call for an immediate NATO-membership invitation.
Even with billions of dollars worth of U.S. military support, including the provision of F-16 fighter jets, Abrams tanks and more, Ukraine faces a tough fight ahead.
Earlier, the Pentagon said in a statement that Austin “will meet with Ukrainian leadership and underscore the U.S. commitment to providing Ukraine with the security assistance it needs to defend itself from Russian aggression on the battlefield.”
Austin will end his fourth visit to Ukraine as Defense Secretary with an address on Kyiv’s successes, American commitment to supplying its troops and — with just over two weeks until the U.S. presidential election — “why Ukraine’s fight matters for U.S. security,” the Pentagon said.
