Biden administration sends $400 million in security aid to Ukraine

The Biden administration on Friday unveiled a $400 million security assistance package to Ukraine, which would include four additional High Mobility Rocket Systems (HIMARS) and additional ammunition.

In a statement, acting Pentagon press secretary Todd Breasseale said the authorization is the 15th drawdown of equipment under presidential drawdown authority — which allows the agency to send weapons from its own stockpile.

A senior defense official told reporters that Friday’s package was meant to help Ukraine cope with the “artillery battle” in the Donbas region of Ukraine.

The U.S. has previously sent the launchers to Kyiv, and Friday’s package will bring the number of launchers Washington has sent to 12.

The systems, which have a range of about 40 miles, gave Ukraine the ability to hit faraway targets with greater accuracy. The senior defense official said that the HIMARS Washington has previously sent are still accounted for, and that Ukrainian forces are still using them.

In addition to the HIMARS, Friday’s package includes three tactical vehicles to recover equipment, demolition munitions, counter-battery systems and spare parts and other equipment.

A senior defense official told reporters on Friday that the U.S. would send 1,000 rounds of a “new type” of 155 mm artillery ammunition that has greater precision and offers “precise capability” for specific targets.

“It will be more effective due to the precision, so it’s a further evolution in our support for Ukraine in this battle in the Donbas,” the official said.

The U.S. has committed $2.2 billion in security assistance to Ukraine within the last three weeks alone, and $8 billion total since the beginning of the Biden administration.

Last week, the administration unveiled a separate $820 million weapons package which included two National Advanced Surface-to-Air Missile Systems (NASAMS), advanced air-defense systems that can hit targets up to 100 miles away.