The United States is ready to announce new military aid and drones for Ukraine

WASHINGTON (AP) — The United States is about to announce that it will provide Ukraine with nearly $800 million in new military aid on Friday, including at least a dozen Scan Eagle surveillance drones, according to multiple U.S. officials.

Officials said the bulk of the aid package will consist of additional shells and ammunition, including Javelin missiles that the Ukrainian military has been using effectively to try to hold off. Russian forces and take back the territory that Moscow has won. Two officials confirmed the new listing of long-endurance portable drones that are catapult-launched and recoverable.

The officials spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss the aid ahead of publication.

For much of the last four months of the war, Russia has focused on capturing the Donbass region of eastern Ukraine, where pro-Moscow separatists have controlled parts of the territory as self-proclaimed republics for eight years.

Russian forces have made some incremental gains in the east, but have also gone on the defensive in other regions as Ukraine ramps up its attacks in Ukrainian peninsula of Crimea in the Black Sea. Moscow seized the territory occupied by Russia in 2014. Nine Russian fighter jets were reported to have been destroyed last week. at an airbase in Crimea in strikes that highlighted the Ukrainians’ ability to strike deep behind enemy lines.

Russian leaders have warned that attacking the facilities in Crimea marks an escalation in the conflict fueled by US and NATO allies and threatens to drag the United States deeper into war.

This latest aid comes as Russia’s war against Ukraine is about to hit the six-month mark. The United States has already sent Ukraine more than $9 billion worth of weapons systems, ammunition and other equipment. It would be the 19th time the Pentagon has provided equipment from Department of Defense stockpiles to Ukraine since August 2021.

Efforts to suppress the clashes have also continued. On Thursday, Turkey’s leader and UN chief met in western Ukraine with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. They discussed a variety of issues, including prisoner exchanges and an effort to have UN atomic energy experts visit the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant in southern Ukraine.

The facility has been controlled by Russian forces since shortly after the invasion began on February 24 and has been the target of a series of explosions. Kyiv and Moscow accuse each other of bombing the plant, stoking international fears of a catastrophe on the mainland.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said he would follow up with Russian President Vladimir Putin as most of the issues discussed would require agreement from the Kremlin.

JOIN THE CONVERSATION

Conversations are the opinions of our readers and are subject to the Code of conduct. The Star does not endorse these views.


Leave a Comment