US announces $250m in new military aid for Ukraine

WASHINGTON: The United States on Tuesday announced a new $250 million military assistance package for Ukraine that includes equipment for clearing mines and obstacles.

Kyiv´s forces are struggling to make substantial gains in a counteroffensive launched earlier this summer that has run into tough Russian defenses including minefields, trenches and tank obstacles.

The assistance will “help Ukraine counter Russia´s ongoing war of aggression on the battlefield and protect its people,” the Pentagon said in a statement. Also included in the package are air defence missiles, artillery rounds, anti-armor missiles and more than three million rounds of small arms ammunition.

The United States has spearheaded the push for international support for Ukraine, quickly forging an international coalition to back Kyiv after Russia invaded in February 2022 and coordinating aid from dozens of countries. Washington has committed to providing tens of billions of dollars in military aid to Kyiv since Russia´s invasion began.

“I am grateful to all American people, the Congress and personally to President Joseph Biden... for the new defense package,” Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky posted on X, formerly known as Twitter.