USA announces allocation of new batch of weapons to Ukraine for $2.5 bln

U.S. President Joe Biden has authorized the allocation of a new batch of weapons worth $2.5 billion to Ukraine, including armored vehicles and air defense systems, the Pentagon said.

The Department of Defense announces the authorization of a Presidential Drawdown of security assistance to meet Ukraine's critical security and defense needs.

It notes that the weapons and equipment will come from Pentagon stockpiles, marking "the thirtieth drawdown of equipment from Defense Department inventories for Ukraine since August 2021."

The ministry said in a statement that the new military assistance package will include:

"additional munitions for National Advanced Surface-to-Air Missile Systems (NASAMS); eight Avenger air defense systems; 59 Bradley Infantry Fighting Vehicles (IFVs) with 590 TOW anti-tank missiles and 295,000 rounds of 25mm ammunition; 90 Stryker Armored Personnel Carriers (APCs) with 20 mine rollers; 53 Mine Resistant Ambush Protected Vehicles (MRAPs); 350 High Mobility Multipurpose Wheeled Vehicles (HMMWVs); 20,000 155mm artillery rounds; approximately 600 precision-guided 155mm artillery rounds; 95,000 105mm artillery rounds; approximately 11,800 120mm mortar rounds; additional ammunition for High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems (HIMARS)."

In addition, "12 ammunition support vehicles; 6 command post vehicles; 22 tactical vehicles to tow weapons; high-speed Anti-radiation missiles (HARMs); approximately 2,000 anti-armor rockets; over 3,000,000 rounds of small arms ammunition; demolition equipment for obstacle clearing; claymore anti-personnel munitions; night vision devices; spare parts and other field equipment."