The United States is preparing a $1 billion military aid package for Ukraine, the first to be sourced from the yet to be signed Ukraine-Israel bill, two U.S. officials told Reuters on Tuesday.
The aid package includes vehicles, Stinger air defense munitions, additional ammunition for high-mobility artillery rocket systems, 155 millimeter artillery ammunition, TOW and Javelin anti-tank munitions and other weapons that can immediately be put to use on the battlefield, the officials said, speaking on condition of anonymity.
President Joe Biden had asked the U.S. Congress to provide $60.8 billion in aid to Ukraine, but the initiative stalled when Republicans in the House of Representatives refused to move the measure forward for months.
On Tuesday the Senate was expected to vote on four bills now passed by the House. One for Ukraine, a second with $26 billion for Israel, a third with $8.12 billion “to counter communist China” in the Indo-Pacific and a fourth that includes a potential ban on the social media app TikTok.
The Ukraine bill also calls for the transfer of ATACMS (Army Tactical Missile Systems) with a range of up to 190 miles, which Kyiv has pledged not to use inside Russia’s territory.