US gives USD 400mn in additional security assistance to Ukraine

Washington [US], November 4 (ANI): The United States on Friday announced approximately USD 400 million as additional security assistance for Ukraine, in a bid to boost Kyiv's security amid the ongoing war with Russia.
"On November 4, the Department of Defense (DoD) announced approximately USD 400 million in additional security assistance for Ukraine under the Ukraine Security Assistance Initiative (USAI)," Pentagon said in a statement.
The US government said this USAI package underscores its continued commitment to supporting Ukraine by meeting its most urgent needs, while also building the capacity of Ukraine's Armed Forces to defend its sovereignty over the long term.
"Unlike Presidential Drawdown authority (PDA), which DoD has continued to leverage to deliver equipment to Ukraine from DoD stocks at a historic pace, USAI is an authority under which the United States procures capabilities from industry," the statement added.
Pentagon said this announcement represents the beginning of a contracting process to provide additional priority capabilities to Ukraine.
The latest US aid to Ukraine includes: funding to refurbish HAWK air defense missiles for inclusion in future Presidential Drawdown packages; 45 Refurbished T-72B Tanks with advanced optics, communications, and armor packages; 1,100 Phoenix Ghost Tactical Unmanned Aerial Systems; and 40 Armored Riverine Boats.
In total, the United States has now committed more than USD 18.9 billion in security assistance to Ukraine since the beginning of the Biden Administration. Since 2014, the United States has committed more than USD 21 billion in security assistance to Ukraine and more than USD 18.2 billion since the beginning of the Russia-Ukraine conflict on February 24.
"Through both PDA and USAI, DoD continues to work with Ukraine to meet both its immediate and longer-term security assistance needs," the Department of Defense said.
With Russia's unrelenting and brutal air attacks on Ukrainian civilian critical infrastructure, additional air defense capabilities are critical, it added. (ANI)