US keeps up weapons shipments to Ukraine with new $500 mln package

The United States plans to announce as soon as Tuesday a new military aid package for Ukraine worth up to $500 million, keeping up US resolve to help Ukraine against Russia as Moscow deals with a mutiny by some of its soldiers.

The package will include ground vehicles as Ukraine presses its counteroffensive, two US officials said. Expected to be included are 30 Bradley fighting vehicles and 25 Stryker armored personnel carriers, one of the officials said.

For the latest headlines, follow our Google News channel online or via the app.

As a part of the aid package, Ukraine will receive munitions for High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems (HIMARS), anti-tank weapons including Javelins and munitions for Patriot and Stinger anti-aircraft systems, according to the officials, who spoke on condition of anonymity.

The package was still being finalized and could change, they said. The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

The package would be funded using Presidential Drawdown Authority, or PDA, which authorizes the president to transfer articles and services from US stocks without congressional approval during an emergency. The material will come from US excess inventory.

The security assistance package would be the 41st approved by the United States for Ukraine since the Russian invasion in February 2022, for a total of more than $40 billion.

Read more: Russian officials emphasize unity after aborted mutiny by Wagner