U.S. giving more aid to Ukraine as Russia touts advances

The U.S. Department of Defense on Monday said that it would send another $1.5 billion aid package to Ukraine, the 62nd equipment bundle it has sent Kyiv during the war. President Joe Biden on Monday said he would send an additional $200 million to Ukraine using his presidential drawdown authority. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Monday thanked the United States for the aid, saying it showed U.S. leadership in the face of Russian aggression.

What do these packages include? The Defense Department is sending air defense systems, ammunition, small arms, communication devices, shoulder-fired anti-tank weapons, and batches of spare parts. The presidential drawdown authority assistance will pay for additional equipment and training, as well as other Defense Department services, according to the White House. Zelenskyy said Monday that such assistance helped save lives and protect against Russian attacks.

What does Russia say about the assistance? Russian state-run media outlet TASS ran an article repeating information from the White House about the aid packages. The outlet reported on Monday that Russian troops pushed Ukrainian forces out of the town of Volchye in the Donetsk region. It also reported that the Kremlin’s forces had killed or wounded more than 400 Ukrainian soldiers in the past day.