Next Ukraine package to be larger than normal, include armored vehicles
The Biden administration is preparing a larger-than-normal package of military aid for Ukraine that will include armored vehicles, in addition to urgently needed artillery and air defenses, according to two U.S. officials.
Defense Department officials are still putting the finishing touches on the potential new tranche, but they want it to be ready to go soon after President Joe Biden signs off on a bill to provide tens of billions of dollars in additional aid for Kyiv, said the officials, who along with others were granted anonymity to speak ahead of an announcement. The Senate is expected to pass the legislation as early as Tuesday, sending it to Biden’s desk.
The package DOD is working on now will be significantly larger than the most recent tranche of $300 million, said one of the U.S. officials, along with a third U.S. official with knowledge of the discussions. The first two U.S. officials said it would include armored vehicles; a fourth person said additional Bradley Fighting Vehicles would be part of the shipment. Older Humvees and M113 armored personnel carriers, as well as missiles, are also expected to be in the package, one of the U.S. officials said.
The administration is preparing a “big package to help meet Ukraine’s battlefield needs,” said the second U.S. official, adding that it will also include artillery and air defenses.
A Pentagon spokesperson declined to comment.
DOD officials are working to finalize the details of the new package ahead of an expected Senate vote on House-passed legislation authorizing nearly $61 billion for Ukraine. That money will go toward replenishing Pentagon stocks provided to Kyiv, as well as sending new weapons and equipment.
In a call with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Monday, Biden vowed to quickly provide “significant new security assistance packages to meet Ukraine’s urgent battlefield and air defense needs” as soon as he signs the new aid into law, according to a readout.
Celeste Wallander, the Pentagon’s assistant secretary for international security affairs, told lawmakers recently that DOD is planning to transfer the aid “within a week or two” after it’s approved.
The Pentagon has sent only one package of aid to Ukraine since December, when it ran out of funding to send additional weapons from its stocks. In March, DOD officials cobbled together $300 million worth of savings from previous contracts to send an emergency package to Kyiv including desperately needed artillery, air defenses, and longer-range missiles.
Zelenskyy welcomed the House’s long-delayed vote Saturday to approve additional funds, saying on social media that it will save lives.
In addition to the aid, POLITICO reported on Saturday that the U.S. is considering sending as many as 60 military advisers to Kyiv to facilitate the incoming weapons transfers while supporting the Ukrainian government. The advisers would be in a non-combat role.
Top U.S. officials have recently warned that Russia is gaining momentum as Ukrainian soldiers run out of ammunition on the front lines. CIA Director Bill Burns told lawmakers last week that without new U.S. weapons, Ukraine could lose by the end of the year.
