“We must not slack off. That’s why today I am announcing another package within the framework of the presidential authority for drawing in the value of approximately 500 million dollars,” said Austin, whose speech was also watched by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky among allies. This is apparently the last military aid that the outgoing administration of Joe Biden will provide to Kyiv before Donald Trump returns to the White House on January 20.
Already the 74th package of military equipment provided by the administration of President Joe Biden should contain air defense missiles, air-to-ground missiles, equipment for F-16 aircraft, secure communication devices or small arms and ammunition.
“Month after month, the members of this contact group helped to provide, manufacture and maintain the systems and ammunition that Ukraine needs,” commented Austin to the coalition of 57 countries, including the Czech Republic, which, starting in April 2022, coordinates assistance to Ukraine against a total Russian invasion. At the same time, due to the changes in the US leadership, a question mark hangs over the future of this contact group.
Biden announced additional aid to Ukraine for 60 billion, he was trumped by the Minister of Finance
America
The twenty-fifth and possibly last meeting of the contact group at the Ramstein base was attended by, among others, German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius, NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte and the head of EU diplomacy Kaja Kallasová.
According to Zelenský, it would be foolish if the cooperation in the Ramstein group did not continue. “We’ve come such a long way and it would be frankly foolish … not to continue working on the defense coalition we’ve created,” he said. “Regardless of what is happening in the world, everyone wants to be sure that their country will not be wiped off the map,” he added.
According to Zelensky, cooperation between Ukraine and its allies in the production of drones should also be deepened now. “Please invest in this strong point of Ukraine,” he said. He also called for the delivery of the promised air defense systems and in this context mentioned Wednesday’s Russian attack on Zaporizhia, which claimed 13 victims.
According to Zelensky, Kiev’s goal is to end the war with dignity, and that this year. Despite continued Western support, Russian forces are now slowly advancing at the cost of heavy losses in the east of Ukraine.
Trump said on Tuesday that he hopes that a truce will be reached in the Russian-Ukrainian conflict within six months of taking office. He previously claimed that he would end the war within 24 hours of taking office.
Trump cannot stop aid to Ukraine overnight, says Lipavský
Europe
