America will send military equipment to Ukraine as quickly as possible. President Joe Biden said in signing the relief package that “shipments will begin immediately, in the coming hours.”
Biden will send military equipment to Ukraine ‘within hours’
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Biden today signed the hard-fought law that frees billions of dollars in new US aid for Ukraine. Earlier today, the US Senate passed the bill after the House of Representatives approved the aid shipment last Saturday. The shipment has been discussed for months.
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‘Vital support’
At the signing, Biden said the aid package “provides vital support to America’s partners so they can defend themselves against threats to their sovereignty.”
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The support package for Ukraine amounts to 61 billion dollars, equivalent to 57 billion euros. It is part of a larger US foreign aid package that also goes to Israel and Taiwan.
Russia responds
A Kremlin spokesperson said in response to Biden’s signing of the law that Russia will expand the buffer zone in Ukraine to protect its own country. This ‘narrative’ has been heard before, says Patrick Bolder, defense expert at The Hague Center for Strategic Studies. The United States’ support package also includes missiles that can travel 300 kilometers. “It’s a justification of Russia’s larger objectives, which go beyond taking some parts of Ukraine.”
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Bolder does expect that the battle in Ukraine will become more intense in the near future. The American weapons will be able to slow the Russian advance, but until then Russia will try to push forward. Recently, Ukraine has had to fight ‘with the handbrake on’, due to the lack of weapons and ammunition. Now that the new shipment is on its way, Bolder expects that Ukraine will also step up its game. “We will see an intensification of the fighting in the coming weeks.”
