On Thursday, US President Joe Biden announced an additional $800 million in military aid for Ukraine and sent a message to his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin that he will never succeed in occupying the country.
Speaking at the White House, Biden said: “Our unity at home, our unity with our allies and partners, our unity with the Ukrainian people is sending an unmistakable message to Putin…He will never succeed in dominating and occupying all of Ukraine,” Biden said. “That will not happen.”
Last week, Biden accused Putin of committing a “genocide” in Ukraine. The president made the accusation in a speech at an ethanol fuel plant in Iowa, where he blamed the Russian invasion for higher gas prices.
“Your family budget, your ability to fill up your tank, none of it should hinge on whether a dictator declares war and commits genocide a half a world away,” Biden said.
The American President acknowledged, however, that with the latest package to Ukraine, he has “almost exhausted the drawdown authority” authorized by Congress in a bipartisan spending bill last month.
“In order to sustain Ukraine for the duration of this fight, next week I will have to send to Congress a supplemental budget request to keep weapons and ammunition flowing without interruption, to continue delivering economic assistance to the Ukrainian people,” Biden said. “My expectation is that Congress will act and move quickly.”
Biden announces economic aid in addition to military aid for Ukraine
According to the Department of Defense, the military aid includes 72 155mm howitzers and 144,000 artillery rounds; 72 tactical vehicles to tow 155mm howitzers; Over 121 Phoenix Ghost Tactical Unmanned Aerial Systems; and field equipment and spare parts.
The U.S. has now given Ukraine $3.4 billion in military aid since Russia’s February 24th invasion. Nearly half of that aid—$1.6 billion—has been approved in the last two weeks alone.
In addition to military assistance, the US is also sending $500m in economic assistance to Ukraine, bringing the total economic assistance sent to Ukraine in the last two months to $1 billion.
The US will take 100,000 Ukrainian refugees
Biden also announced the creation of “Unite for Ukraine,” a humanitarian parole program that will expedite the migration process from Europe to the US for Ukrainian refugees. He has promised that the US will take in 100,000 Ukrainian refugees.
“This new humanitarian parole program will complement the existing legal pathways available to Ukrainians including immigrant visas and refugee processing,” Biden said.
“It will provide an expedient channel for secure legal migration from Europe to the United States for Ukrainians who have a US sponsor such as a family or an NGO,” Biden announced, adding that, “this program will be fast, it will be streamlined and it will ensure the United States will honor its commitment to the people of Ukraine and need not go through our southern border.”
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