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Secretary of State Antony Brinken made an unscheduled visit to Kyiv on Thursday to announce a $2 billion military aid package to Ukraine and other European countries threatened by Russia.
Blinken told a senior Ukrainian official that the latest package of military aid to Ukraine, along with 18 NATO member states and regional security partners, “are most likely to be at risk of future Russian aggression.” said it would provide long-term funding for
It was unclear whether Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky attended the meeting, and Fox News Digital was unable to reach the State Department for comment.
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The announcement came hours after Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin said the United States had approved an additional $675 million in heavy equipment for the Ukrainian military.
This package, separate from the military funding package announced by Blinken, will provide Kyiv with howitzers, artillery shells, Humvees, armored ambulances, anti-tank systems and more.
In a meeting with the Ukrainian Defense Liaison Group in Ramstein, German Austin said that as Ukrainian forces launched a counteroffensive along a 1,500-mile frontline that stretched from Kharkiv in the north to Mykolaiv in the north, “the war is another important event.” It’s in the moment,” he said. South.
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“Now we are seeing the clear success of our common effort on the battlefield,” Austin said at a meeting with other senior defense officials. “The face of war is changing, and the mission of this contact group is to are also changing.โ
The meeting with Austin was attended by senior Ukrainian defense officials, along with NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg.
It’s unclear how much of the $2 billion announced today by Blinken will go to Ukraine alone. But the Associated Press reports that since President Biden took office, the White House has provided Ukraine with more than $15 billion.
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The increase in funding comes not only because fighting rages across Ukraine, but also because Russian President Vladimir Putin has set new targets on the US, claiming Washington’s influence globally is ‘weaking’. Just one day later.
Putin has turned increasingly to Asia in recent months to strengthen geopolitical ties in Moscow, which has been largely cut off from Europe and NATO allies after the February invasion of Ukraine.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.