The White House said Wednesday it will send another $700 million in military aid to Ukraine including medium-range rockets that could help it repel Russian advances in the battleground Donbas region.
The high-tech rockets are part of a new tranche of weaponry including helicopters, Javelin anti-tank weapon systems, and tactical vehicles.
The U.S. has so far provided about $4.5 billion in aid to embattled Ukraine since Russia launched its unprovoked invasion in late February.
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Ukrainian leaders have been pleading with the U.S. for the rockets because they are seen as a crucial tool to turn back the Russian onslaught in the Donbas, which is the industrial heartland of the nation.
The rocket system is known as a High Mobility Artillery Rocket System, or HIMARS, which is mounted on a truck and can carry a container with six rocket
President Biden wants to give the Ukrainians the tools they need to push back Russia’s advance without giving them the ability to strike deep into Russia itself, which would trigger an escalation in the war.
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“The Ukrainians have given us assurances that they will not use these systems against targets on Russian territory,” Secretary of State Antony Blinken said. “There is a strong trust bond between Ukraine and the United States.”
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov countered that the U.S. is “deliberately and diligently pouring fuel on the fire” by supplying the new weaponry.
Peskov says Moscow doesn’t trust Ukraine’s promises to not strike inside Russia.
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Ukraine could use the rockets to intercept Russian artillery and take out Russian positions in towns where fighting is intense, such as Sievierodonetsk.
Sievierodonetsk is important to Russian efforts to capture the Donbas before more Western arms arrive to bolster Ukraine’s defense.
The city, which is 90 miles south of the Russian border, is the center of the last pocket of Ukrainian-held territory in Luhansk province, which along with Donetsk makes up the Donbas region.
With News Wire Services
