Blinken says U.S. will give Ukraine another $2 billion

STORY: :: Antony Blinken says the U.S. will give Ukraine another $2 billion in military financing

:: May 15, 2024

:: Antony Blinken, U.S. Secretary of State

:: Kyiv, Ukraine

:: "We will provide an additional $2 billion in foreign military financing for Ukraine. And we put this together in a first-of-its-kind defense enterprise fund, and it has three components. One, is to provide weapons today. So this will assist Ukraine in acquiring those weapons. Two, is to focus as well on something that Dmytro (Kuleba) just talked about, investing in Ukraine's defense industrial base, helping to strengthen even more its capacity to produce what it needs for itself, but also to produce for others. And finally, using this fund to help Ukraine purchase military equipment from other countries, not just the United States, for Ukraine's use."

:: "Of course, everyone's eyes are focused on the situation in the east and northeast, Kharkiv in particular. And so the newest support that I just announced, but particularly the $60 billion supplemental, we know is coming at a critical time."

The top diplomat is the most senior U.S. official to visit Ukraine since the U.S. Congress passed a long-delayed $61 billion aid package last month.

A U.S. official said $1.6 billion of the $2 billion was earmarked in the supplemental funding bill signed by U.S. President Joe Biden last month and the remaining $400 million is from existing foreign military financing funds that had not yet been allocated.