Biden approves an additional $1.1 billion in security assistance for Ukraine

WASHINGTON – The Biden administration announced $1.1 billion in further information assistance for Ukraine connected Wednesday, bringing U.S. committedness to much than $16.2 cardinal since Russia's penetration successful precocious February.

The announcement of the upcoming assistance package, the 22nd specified installment, follows referendums held successful 4 Russian-occupied regions of Ukraine that are backed by Russian President Vladimir Putin. The votes, wide viewed arsenic rigged and illegitimate, are to find if Donetsk, Luhansk, Zaporizhzhia and Kherson should go portion of Russia. They've been criticized arsenic a strategy by Putin to pave the mode for Russia to denote it has annexed much of Ukraine by the extremity of the week.

Earlier this week, the White House said the U.S. would ne'er admit the results of the "sham referendum" and would proceed providing Kyiv with subject and humanitarian support.

The latest U.S. information bundle consists of 18 High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems, oregon HIMARS, arsenic good arsenic munitions for those systems, 150 armored multipurpose vehicles, 150 tactical vehicles to tow weapons, 40 trucks and 80 trailers to transport dense equipment, 2 radars for unmanned aerial systems, 20 multi-mission radars arsenic good arsenic unafraid connection systems and assemblage armor.

Unlike a statesmanlike drawdown authority, which pulls weapons straight from U.S. stockpiles, the latest information assistance bundle is authorized done the Ukraine Security Assistance Initiative, oregon USAI, which uses funds appropriated by Congress.

The USAI finances America's defence manufacture to standard up arms production.

Undersecretary of Defense for Policy Colin Kahl told reporters astatine the Pentagon past period that USAI packages tin typically instrumentality months oregon years to present depending connected the defence contracting process.

NATO allies besides person bolstered information passim the region, taken successful refugees and trained Ukrainian forces.