The U.S., for the first time Friday, said it will give Ukraine Scan Eagle surveillance drones, mine-resistant vehicles, anti-armour rounds and howitzer weapons to help Ukrainian forces regain territory and mount a counteroffensive against Russian invaders.
A senior defence official told reporters that the new $775 million aid package would include 15 Scan Eagles, 40 mine-resistant, ambush-protected vehicles known as MRAPs with mine-clearing rollers and 2,000 anti-aircraft vehicles. Includes aircraft vehicles. Armour rounds will be involved that can help Ukraine’s troops advance. To the south and east, where the Russian army has placed mines. The official said that the U.S. Wants to help shape and arm the Ukrainian military of the future as the war continues.
“These capabilities are carefully calibrated to make the most difference on the battlefield and strengthen Ukraine’s position at the negotiating table,” Secretary of State Antony Blinken said in a statement.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy tweeted his appreciation for the package Friday, saying, “We have taken another important step to defeat the aggressor.”
This latest aid comes as Russia’s war on Ukraine is about to reach the six-month mark. It brings the total U.S. military aid to Ukraine to about $10.6 billion since the beginning of the Biden administration. It is the 19th time the Pentagon has provided equipment from Defense Department stocks to Ukraine since August 2021.
The US has provided howitzer ammunition, but this is the first time it will ship 16 weapon systems. The aid package also includes 1,500 anti-tank missiles, 1,000 Javelin missiles and an undisclosed number of high-speed, anti-radiation or HARM missiles targeting radar systems. The Ukrainian army is successfully using various precision artillery systems and trying to capture the Russian military and retake the area Moscow had gained.
The defence official briefed reporters on the condition of anonymity under ground rules set by the Defense Department about the new weapon’s aid.
In the past four months of the war, Russia has focused on capturing the Donbas region of eastern Ukraine, where pro-Moscow separatists have controlled some areas as self-declared republics for eight years.
Russian forces have made some incremental gains in the east but have been placed on the defensive in other areas as well, as Ukraine intensifies its attacks in the Black Sea peninsula of Ukraine’s Crimea. Moscow annexed the Russian-occupied territory in 2014. Nine Russian warplanes were reported destroyed at an air base in Crimea last week, highlighting the Ukrainians’ ability to strike deep behind enemy lines.
Russian leaders have warned that striking facilities in Crimea will be attacked by the U.S. and mark an escalation in a conflict fueled by NATO allies, threatening to drag the US further into the war.
A Western official said Friday that the war is at an “almost operational standstill”, with neither side capable of launching major strikes. The official, who spoke anonymously to discuss military assessments, said the overall pace of the campaign has slowed, partly because both sides believe “this is a marathon, not a sprint, and that the expenditure rate and The protection of their weapons is important.”
But the U.S. And Western officials said that Ukraine could launch successful strikes deep behind Russian battle lines, eroding logistical support and control and control of Moscow’s forces and hurting their morale.
The US official said that although Ukrainian troops have not been able to retake many areas, they can weaken Russian positions in many places.
Efforts are also on to reduce the conflict. On Thursday, the Turkish leader and UN chief met with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky in western Ukraine. They discussed various issues, including prisoner exchanges and an attempt by UN nuclear energy experts to visit the Zaporizhzhya Nuclear Power Plant in southern Ukraine.
Russian forces have controlled the facility since shortly after the invasion began on Feb. 24 and has been the target of a number of explosions. Kyiv and Moscow accuse each other of shelling the plant, stoking international fears of a catastrophe on the continent.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said he would follow up with Russian President Vladimir Putin, given that most of the matters discussed would require the Kremlin’s agreement.