The United States is sending an additional $125 million worth of weapons to Ukraine to support its military operations against Russia, including much-needed air defense capabilities, radars to detect and counter enemy artillery, and anti-tank weapons, the White House said on Friday.
This package from the US comes as Ukraine has launched its biggest ground attack on Russian soil since the war began in February 2022. The attack in the Kursk region has prompted Moscow to declare a state of emergency and send additional troops there.
Use of US weapons
National security spokesman John Kirby said the use of US weapons in the Ukraine attack was consistent with administration policies. The Biden administration has approved their use in cross-border retaliatory strikes against Russia, but not against targets inside Russia, though the specific distance is unclear.
Deadly weapons in this package
The weapons in this aid package will be drawn from existing US stocks and will include Stinger missiles, 155 mm and 105 mm artillery ammunition, High Mobility Artillery Rocket System (HIMARS) ammunition and vehicles. This brings the total amount of US aid to Ukraine to US$55.6 billion through 2022.
14 people killed in Russian missile attack
The United Nations Human Rights Monitoring Mission in Ukraine said on Friday that July saw the highest number of civilian casualties in Ukraine since October 2022. The mission said at least 219 civilians were killed and 1,018 injured in conflict-related violence in July. At the same time, at least 14 people were killed and 44 injured in a Russian missile attack on a shopping mall in Kostiantynivka in the eastern Donetsk region.
