President Joe Biden said Thursday that the sustained and coordinated support of the international community, led by the United States, was important for Ukraine to have been able to prevent Russia from taking over the country.
“The Battle of Kiev was a historic victory for the Ukrainians. It was a victory for freedom won by the Ukrainian people with unprecedented assistance from the United States and our allies and partners,” the Democratic president wrote on his Twitter account.
He added: “All American taxpayers, all members of our Armed Forces can be proud of the fact that the generosity of our country, and the skill and service of our troops, helped to arm Ukraine to repel Russia's aggression.”
Biden announced on Thursday a new package of $800 million in military aid to Ukraine and another 500 million dollars in economic assistance, in addition to banning any ship linked to Russia from docking in his country.
The president delivered a speech from the White House, coinciding with the start this week of a new phase of the Russian offensive in Ukraine, more focused on the Donbas region in the east.
The Russians “have launched and focused their campaign to seize new territory in eastern Ukraine and we are now in a crucial window of time in which the foundations will be laid for the next phase of this war,” Biden warned.
For this reason, he noted that the US and its allies are going to move “as quickly as possible” to provide Ukrainian forces with the weapons and equipment they need to defend themselves.
This new $800 million package is in addition to that which the US granted Ukraine for the same value last week and is designed to meet the needs of Ukrainians in the Battle of the Donbas.
According to a statement by Pentagon spokesman John Kirby, the attendance announced this Thursday contains 72 155-millimeter and 144 Howitzer guns. 000 artillery pieces, 72 tactical vehicles to carry such guns, 121 Phoenix drones and field equipment.
Kirby stressed that this material, along with the 18 Howitzers included in last week's package, provides enough artillery for five battalions.
The Pentagon noted that since Biden's arrival at the White House in January 2021, the US has spent more than $4 billion on security assistance for Ukraine, including $3.4 billion since the start of the Russian invasion on February 24.
Biden remarked that the new aid is “designed” for the characteristics of the current stage of the Russian offensive in an area, the Donbas, “which is topographically different, flat, has no mountains and requires different weapons to be more effective.”
In parallel, the US president revealed that his country will allocate an additional 500 million in “direct economic assistance to the Ukrainian government.”
“This puts our total economic support for Ukraine at $1 billion over the past two months,” said Biden, who explained that the aid will serve to stabilize this country's battered economy and support “communities devastated by the Russian attack.”
With these latest disbursements, the Biden government has nearly exhausted the $13.6 billion that the US Congress approved last month to provide military and humanitarian aid to Kiev.
For this reason, the president announced on Thursday that he intends to ask Congress next week to authorize more funds “to maintain the flow of arms and ammunition without interruption.”
A day after the US Department of the Treasury imposed a new battery of sanctions against a network of 40 individuals and companies, led by Russian oligarch Konstantin Malofeyev, Biden reported Thursday of a veto on US coasts and ports of ships linked to Russia.
The measure affects vessels that sail under the flag of that country or that are owned or operated by “Russian interests”.
“This is another crucial step we are taking in coordination with our partners in the European Union, the United Kingdom and Canada to further deny Russia the benefits of the international economic system that it has enjoyed in the past,” Biden said.
On the humanitarian front, the US launched on Thursday a plan to accelerate the arrival of Ukrainian refugees and advance Biden's commitment in March to welcome up to 100,000 people fleeing the conflict.
In a call with journalists, senior White House officials explained that the plan, dubbed “United for Ukraine”, will allow US citizens, companies and organizations to “sponsor” Ukrainians for their reception in the US.
The application process for this program will be available from next Monday online.
Prior to his intervention at the White House, Biden received Ukrainian Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal, who is visiting Washington, at the presidential mansion, and with whom he spoke about this new aid package, a US government statement said.
On Thursday, Moscow assured that its Armed Forces have taken control of the Ukrainian city of Mariupol, on the shores of the Azov Sea, although it admitted that there is a resistance exchange left in the Azovstal steel mill, whose assault has been canceled by President Vladimir Putin.
(With information from EFE)
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