Hours before he was scheduled to meet with his Ukrainian counterpart Volodymyr Zelensky, U.S. President Joe Biden announced nearly $8 billion in additional military aid for Kyiv. The move will provide Ukraine with long-range strike weapons, air defenses, and additional F-16 training for pilots, among other items.
“For nearly three years, the United States has rallied the world to stand with the people of Ukraine as they defend their freedom from Russian aggression, and it has been a top priority of my administration to provide Ukraine with the support it needs to prevail,” Biden said in a statement early Thursday morning. “In that time, Ukraine has won the battle of Kyiv, reclaimed more than half the territory that Russia seized at the start of the war, and safeguarded its sovereignty and independence. But there is more work to do. That is why, today, I am announcing a surge in security assistance for Ukraine and a series of additional actions to help Ukraine win this war.”
The new aid comes from two pools of funding. Most of it – $5.5 billion – is from Presidential Drawdown Authority (PDA) funding. That program sends military equipment to Ukraine from existing U.S. stocks and pays for its replenishment. By issuing his directive to the Pentagon, Biden assures that the Congressionally authorized PDA funds to not expire on Sept. 30 with the end of the current fiscal year.
The second pool of funds – $2.4 billion – is from the Ukraine Security Assistance Initiative (USAI) and provides money to Ukraine to procure listed items directly from manufacturers.
The USAI funds “will provide Ukraine with additional air defense, Unmanned Aerial Systems, and air-to-ground munitions, as well as strengthen Ukraine’s defense industrial base and support its maintenance and sustainment requirements,” Biden stated.
“To enhance Ukraine’s long-range strike capabilities, I have decided to provide Ukraine with” AGM-154 Joint Standoff Weapon (JSOW) glide munitions,” Biden announced. The unpowered air-to-ground weapon will be used by Ukraine’s donated F-16s. They have a range of over 70 miles, depending on flight profile, so it can be launched from outside the range of many enemy’s air defense systems. You can read what this weapon will bring in terms of capabilities to Ukraine in our previous report here.
Back in a June of 2023, we published a large feature about the potential weapons that would equip Ukraine’s F-16s. In that piece we posited JSOW would be the most likely standoff strike option to be transferred for a number of reasons.
Biden also directed the Pentagon to “refurbish and provide Ukraine with an additional Patriot air defense battery and to provide Ukraine with additional Patriot missiles.” The U.S. has so far provided Ukraine with two such systems.
In addition, Biden ordered the Pentagon to “expand training for Ukrainian F-16 pilots, including by supporting the training of an additional 18 pilots next year.” Ukraine had only around half a dozen pilots trained to fly the F-16 when the first jets were delivered this summer, and one has been killed. The lack of pilots and robust training to support a fleet that could end up being nearly 100 jets has been a major concern of Kyiv’s.
Beyond military aid, Biden announced that the Department of Justice, the Department of the Treasury, and the U.S. Secret Service “have taken action today to disrupt a global cryptocurrency network, in coordination with international partners.” That move is designed to “counter Russian sanctions evasion and money laundering, The United States will continue to raise the costs on Russia for its war in Ukraine and to deprive the Russian defense industrial base of resources.”
Biden did not specify what systems will be provided to Ukraine under the additional PDA funding. However, on Wednesday, the Pentagon announced a new $375 million package – the 66th PDA – that included the first donation of JSOWs.
That PDA package also included:
- Ammunition for High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems (HIMARS);
- 155mm and 105mm artillery ammunition;
- Tube-launched, Optically tracked, Wire-guided (TOW) missiles;
- Javelin and AT-4 anti-armor systems;
- M1117 Armored Security Vehicles;
- Mine Resistant Ambush Protected (MRAP) Vehicles;
- Light tactical vehicles;
- Armored bridging systems;
- Small arms;
- Patrol boats;
- Demolitions equipment and munitions;
- Spare parts, ancillary equipment, services, training, and transportation.
The new aid funding announcement comes as Zelensky visited the U.S. to drum up support for his as-yet-undisclosed “victory plan.” It is said to include long-term guarantees for security assistance as well as requests for more long-range weapons and the ability to use them deep inside Russia, something Biden so far has refused to do, fearing a backlash from Russian President Vladimir Putin and concerns about maintaining U.S. supplies.
While Zelensky has yet to publicly disclose his victory plan, it is being met with skepticism by the Biden administration, The Wall Street Journal reported.
The plan “lacks a comprehensive strategy and is little more than a repackaged request for more weapons and the lifting of restrictions on long-range missiles,” the publication reported, citing U.S. officials.
During his trip to Washington, Zelensky will also meet with Vice President Kamala Harris, the Democratic presidential nominee, to discuss his plan. A meeting with Republican nominee and former President Donald Trump seems to be off the table at the moment. Trump and fellow Republicans have taken to chastizing Zelensky, with many calling for him to fire Ukrainian Ambassador to the U.S. Oksana Markarova over his visit last week to an ammunition plant in Scranton, Pennsylvania because no Republicans were involved.
Though still pushing for more, Zelensky expressed gratitude to Biden and Congress for delivering the new aid.
Even if the plan is rejected, Zelensky will go home with a win. Before he arrived, most of the money for the new aid was still caught up in the uncertainties of the U.S. political process.
Biden was forced to announce the new package after Congress failed to include a request from the administration to extend the Presidential Drawdown Authority (PDA) for Ukraine in the stopgap funding bill that passed on Wednesday night, The Hill reported.
“The failure of Congress to extend the PDA is one symptom of Washington’s dysfunction and increased Republican opposition over allocating aid for Ukraine,” the publication explained.
Even with the new aid, Ukraine faces an increasingly difficult fight from Russia, especially in the east, where several towns are in danger of falling. It continues to advance incrementally in Russia’s Kursk region, but how much longer Zelensky can staff and equip both fronts remains to be seen.
Ukraine should get new equipment and weapons from existing U.S. stocks soon but it will be years before they can procure weapons from manufacturers.
The dynamics on the battlefield could be radically different the next time Zelensky visits the U.S.
Contact the author: howard@thewarzone.com