US President Joe Biden announced Wednesday an additional $800 million in military assistance to Ukraine ahead of a wider Russian assault expected in the eastern region.
The package brings the total military aid since the Russian invasion in February to more than $2.5 billion, said in a statement after a phone call with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy.
It will include artillery systems, artillery rounds, armored personnel carriers, and unmanned coastal defense boats, Biden.
Biden also approved the transfer of additional helicopters, saying equipment provided to Ukraine "has been critical" as it confronts the invasion.
"We cannot rest now. As I assured President Zelenskyy, the American people will continue to stand with the brave Ukrainian people in their fight for freedom," Biden said in a statement.
The new package includes 11 Mi-17 helicopters that had been earmarked for Afghanistan before the U.S.-backed government collapsed last year. It also includes 18 155mm howitzers, along with 40,000 artillery rounds, counter-artillery radars, 200 armored personnel carriers, and 300 additional "Switchblade" drones.
This was the first time howitzers have been provided to Ukraine by the United States.
The new aid will be funded using the Presidential Drawdown Authority (PDA), in which the president can authorize the transfer of articles and services from U.S. stocks without congressional approval in response to an emergency.
Zelenskiy has been pleading with U.S. and European leaders to provide heavier arms and equipment. Thousands have been killed and millions displaced in the seven-week-long invasion.
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