Pentagon unveils $988M Ukraine aid before administration shift
Pentagon Chief Lloyd Austin announced on Saturday a new military aid package for Ukraine, which includes the purchase of missiles and drones worth $988 million. This package is part of the current administration's efforts to fully utilize the resources available to support Ukraine before the upcoming change of power in Washington.
The new aid package comprises only three items: ammunition for the HIMARS artillery rocket systems, unmanned aerial systems, and additional equipment and spare parts. The weapons will be provided to Ukraine under the Ukraine Security Assistance Initiative (USAI), meaning they will not be transferred from U.S. military stockpiles but purchased from manufacturers. The "HIMARS ammunition" category typically includes ATACMS ballistic missiles.
Austin announced the new package five days after a previous package worth $425 million during the annual Reagan National Defense Forum in California. In his speech, he emphasized that the current administration "made its choice" regarding assistance to Ukraine and gained the support of politicians from both parties in Washington, but now "the next administration must make its own choice." He added that President Ronald Reagan—the event's patron, held at his presidential library in Simi Valley—would stand with Ukraine, American security, and human freedom.
Act before Trump
The outgoing U.S. administration is endeavoring to utilize all the resources allocated by Congress for aid to Ukraine by the end of its term, i.e., January 20. According to media reports, it may not fulfill this promise due to logistical obstacles and concerns about excessively depleting its own arsenals.
According to Reuters, the administration still has slightly more than $1 billion available within the Ukraine Security Assistance Initiative (USAI) fund and is authorized to transfer U.S. own weapons worth $6 billion to Ukraine.
This past week, National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan announced that in the coming weeks, Ukraine would receive "hundreds of thousands" of artillery ammunition and "thousands" of missiles to position Kyiv in the best possible stance. However, he did not reiterate the promise to use all available resources.
Unused funds
Unused funds will remain available to new U.S. President Donald Trump, who met with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky in Paris on Saturday.
Trump has previously criticized the costs of supporting Kyiv and promised to end the war in Ukraine before officially taking office. According to Gen. Keith Kellogg, chosen by Trump as a special envoy on Ukraine and Russia, one way to prompt Ukraine to negotiate would be to threaten withholding aid, while another way to prompt Russia to the negotiating table would be to threaten increasing support for Kyiv.
