The Biden administration said Tuesday that it will send another $300 million in security assistance to Ukraine as President Biden’s request for billions of dollars more remains stalled in Congress.
The emergency package, announced by the White House on Tuesday, will be funded by “unanticipated cost savings” from contracts the Pentagon had brokered to replace weapons previously provided to Ukraine, national security adviser Jake Sullivan told reporters. The package will include artillery shells and other weapons, he said.
“It turns out, we negotiated well,” Sullivan said. “Those contracts came in under budget, so we have a modest amount of funding available. And to a put a fine point on it, we’re able to use these cost savings to make this modest amount of new security assistance available right now, without impacting U.S. military readiness.”
Sullivan said the weapons approved for transfer include guided multiple-launch rocket systems, which the Ukrainian military has used to great effect against the invading Russian military.
“It is assistance that Ukraine desperately needs to hold the line against Russian attacks and to push back against the continued Russian onslaught in the east and in other parts of Ukraine,” Sullivan said.
This is a developing story. It will be updated.