(ProsperNews.net) – The Biden administration announced a $988 million military aid package to Ukraine on Saturday, aiming to bolster the country’s defenses as it continues to fight against Russian aggression. The aid, part of the Ukraine Security Assistance Initiative, includes munitions for rocket systems, unmanned aerial systems, and funding for maintenance and repairs to sustain Ukraine’s combat capabilities.
Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin, speaking at the Reagan National Defense Forum in California, underscored the administration’s commitment to Ukraine. “This administration has made its choice. And so has a bipartisan coalition in Congress,” Austin said. “The next administration must make its own choice, but I am confident that President Reagan would have stood on the side of Ukraine, American security, and human freedom.”
The announcement coincided with President-elect Donald Trump’s meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in Paris during the reopening ceremony of Notre Dame Cathedral. Zelenskyy, who has called for Ukraine’s admission to NATO, reiterated his appeal for U.S. support and expressed openness to negotiations while rejecting any proposals that involve ceding Ukrainian territory to Russia.
The Biden administration has pledged to deliver as much support as possible before Trump takes office in January. National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan emphasized the urgency of the aid, stating that additional artillery rounds, rockets, and other critical equipment would be delivered by mid-January to help Ukraine defend its independence.
The aid package represents the administration’s 22nd installment through the Ukraine Security Assistance Initiative. However, further funding has hit resistance in Congress. Earlier this week, House Speaker Mike Johnson rejected a $24 billion funding request from the Biden administration, signaling a potential shift in U.S. policy under the incoming administration.
“It is not the place of Joe Biden to make that decision now,” Johnson said. “We have a newly elected president, and we’re going to wait and take the new commander in chief’s direction on all that. So, I don’t expect any Ukraine funding to come up now.”
Trump has been critical of Biden’s approach to the conflict, pledging during his campaign to end the war quickly without providing specifics. His running mate, JD Vance, previously suggested Ukraine could negotiate peace by ceding territory and establishing a demilitarized zone—ideas that Zelenskyy has firmly rejected.
As the transition of power approaches, the Biden administration is racing to strengthen Ukraine’s position. How the next administration will address the ongoing conflict remains uncertain, but it is poised to be a defining issue in U.S. foreign policy.
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