U.S. sending new weapons package to Ukraine

President Biden has authorized a new $800 million package of U.S. weapons transfers to Ukraine, including helicopters, howitzer cannons, armored vehicles, armed drones, and counterair and counter artillery radars to bolster the Ukrainian military as the ongoing Russian invasion becomes more focused on the eastern region of the country.

The new package specifically includes:

- 11 Mi-17 helicopters

- 18 155 mm towed howitzers and 40,000 artillery rounds

- 10 AN/TPQ-36 counter artillery radars

- Two AN/MPQ-64 Sentinel air surveillance radars

- 300 Switchblade unmanned aerial systems

- 500 Javelin missiles and “thousands of other anti-armor systems”

- 200 M113 armored personnel carriers

- 100 armors humvees

- Unmanned coastal defense vessels

- Counter-chemical warfare equipment

- Medical equipment

- 30,000 sets of body armor and helmets

- More than 2,000 optics and laser rangefinders

- C-4 explosives and demolition equipment

- M18A1 Claymore anti-personnel mines

Pentagon Press Secretary John Kirby said the new equipment is being provided to help Ukraine defend the Donbas region of the country now that Russia has repositioned its forces away from Kyiv and further east.

“This is all stuff we’ve talked about with the Ukrainians,” he said. “The Ukrainians have made it clear that in this fight that’s coming, artillery is a critical need. We will be in an iterative conversation with them going forward.”

Additionally, Kirby said Deputy Defense Secretary Kathleen Hicks met today with executives from some of the world’s top defense contractors, including Boeing, L-3 Harris, Lockheed Martin, BAE Systems, Northrop Grumman and HII, to ensure that U.S. stocks can be replenished after equipment is transferred to Ukraine.

Kirby said the United States has now committed $3.2 billion in assistance to Ukraine during the Biden administration, including $2.6 billion since the Russian invasion began.