The administration of current U.S. President Joe Biden is planning to allocate a military aid package to Ukraine totaling $500 million.
According to Associated Press, citing two sources, the president's administration seeks to create more favorable conditions for Kyiv ahead of negotiations to end the war.
As per the sources, the aid will be provided under the Presidential Drawdown Authority program. This allows for the removal of ammunition and weapons from U.S. stockpiles without needing Congressional approval.
A Pentagon representative explained that this is being done to deliver arms to Ukraine by the end of January.
AP reported that the U.S. could announce the latest aid package for Ukraine on January 7.
A corresponding statement is expected to be made during Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin's visit to Germany on January 9.
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In early December, the Pentagon announced a $725 million aid package for Ukraine. These funds were allocated under the U.S. presidential powers to draw down weapons from Pentagon stockpiles.
In November, the Pentagon stated that the U.S. has currently approved $9.3 billion in military aid for Ukraine. Of this amount, $7.1 billion is under the PDA initiative (Presidential Drawdown Authority mechanism), and $2.21 billion is from USAI funds.
However, the Pentagon anticipated that they would not be able to send all of the remaining $4 billion approved by Congress. Consequently, these funds will be transferred to the administration of Donald Trump.
According to U.S. media, Ukraine is running low on the ATACMS missiles supplied by the U.S.