US to send Ukraine anti-drone, air defence aid worth $372m

WASHINGTON – The United States is preparing to send Ukraine a US$275 million (S$372 million) military aid package that offers new capabilities to defeat drones and strengthen air defences, according to a document seen by Reuters on Thursday.

The package could be announced as early as Friday.

The Pentagon is also expected to include rockets for High Mobility Artillery Rocket System (Himars) launchers made by Lockheed Martin, 155mm ammunition, Humvee military vehicles and generators.

The US$275 million will be covered by the Presidential Drawdown Authority (PDA), which allows the US to transfer defence articles and services from stocks quickly without congressional approval in response to an emergency.

Russia’s surge in missile strikes in Ukraine

is partly designed to exhaust Kyiv’s supplies of air defences and achieve dominance of the skies above Ukraine, a senior Pentagon official said in November.

To counter these attacks, the US has sent sophisticated anti-aircraft Nasams systems to Ukraine that have been running for a few weeks.

Washington previously announced it was sending four Avenger short-range air defence systems that use Stinger missiles, made by Raytheon Technologies, and Hawk interceptor missiles.

Since the

Russian invasion of Ukraine on Feb 24,

which Moscow calls a “special military operation”, the US has sent around US$19.1 billion worth of security assistance to Kyiv.

US lawmakers voted on Thursday to provide Ukraine at least US$800 million in additional security assistance in 2023. REUTERS