According to the American Embassy, Kyiv, U.S. military assistance to Ukraine to defend against possible Russian invasion began arriving Friday night.
In a tweet, the embassy stated that the material contained close to 200,000 pounds worth of lethal aid. This includes ammunition for the front-line defenders in Ukraine.
The embassy stated in a tweet that the shipment, which has totalled $2.7 billion USD since 2014, “demonstrates U.S. commitments to help Ukraine strengthen its defenses in the face growing Russian aggression.”
The shipment – and $2.7 billion USD since 2014 – demonstrates U.S. commitment to helping Ukraine bolster its defenses in the face of growing Russian aggression. 🇺🇸🇺🇦 #partnershipstrong [2/2] pic.twitter.com/scPFWM3we7
— U.S. Embassy Kyiv (@USEmbassyKyiv) January 22, 2022
Large green containers were seen being unloaded at the airport in photos that were included with the tweets. Although the embassy didn’t elaborate or specify what was inside, it stated that this was the first shipment of assistance recently directed by President Joe Biden.
This announcement came at the end of a stressful week when it seemed more likely that Russia would attack Ukraine. Despite the fact that both sides were willing to continue negotiations, a meeting between Secretary of State Antony Blinken in Geneva and Sergei Lavrov, Russian Foreign Minister, didn’t produce an agreement.
“If Russia wishes to convince the world it does not have aggressive intentions toward Ukraine, de-escalating is a good place to start,” Blinken stated Friday after a three-day European tour.
Russia has put together a large armed force at its border with Ukraine. It also sent troops and armour to Belarus and Ukraine’s north for joint military drills that are scheduled to start on February 10.
Putin demanded security guarantees to prevent Ukraine from joining the North Atlantic Treaty Organization. He also requested that the alliance return its forces to the 1997 positions it held before Central and Eastern European countries joined NATO.
These demands were rejected by the U.S. and NATO allies. Putin stated that he does not intend to invade Ukraine.
Biden will meet his national security team at Camp David in Maryland over the weekend. Jen Psaki, White House Press Secretary, stated Friday that while there were no breakthroughs expected today “we are on a clearer track in terms of understanding one another’s concerns.”
